Life of Harry Watts; sixty years sailor & diver;

mm

THE LIBRARY

OF

THE UNIVERSITY

OF CALIFORNIA

PRESENTED BY

PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND

MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID

LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

HARRY WATTS.

LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

SIXTY YEARS SAILOR & DIVER

BY

ALFRED SPENCER

Author of " Dog- Watch Yarns ;" " Tales of a Tar
&c.

WITH A FOREWORD BY
ANDREW CARNEGIE, ll.d.

ILLUSTRATIONS BY
OSWALD CROMPTON, a.r.c.a.

SUNDERLAND :

HILLS AND COMPANY, 19 FAWCETT STREET.
1911.

~*.L5>

PRINTED BY
HILLS AND COMPANY, 19 FAWCETT STREET, SUNDERLAND.

v.

FOREWORD.

I do not see how you can have a better
preface to the forthcoming volume than the
words I used concerning Mr. Watts when I
was in Sunderland last year. They came from
the heart, and they go to the heart as I re-read
them to-day : —

" I have to-day been introduced to a man who

has, 1 think, the most ideal character of any man

living on the face of the earth. I have shaken

hands with a man who has saved thirty-six lives.

Among the distinguished men whose names the

Mayor has recited, you should never let the

memory of this Sunderland man die. Compared

with his acts, military glory sinks into nothing.

The hero who kills men is the hero of barbarism ;

the hero of civilisation saves the lives of his

fellows."

ANDREW CARNEGIE.

New York, Nov. 22nd, 1910.

M309969

VI.

PREFACE

On October 3rd, 1910, the Mayor (Coun. Arthur F.
Young-) convened a meeting- of a few gentlemen in the
Mayor's Parlour, for the purpose of considering- a pro-
posal to place on permanent record the life and work
of Mr. Henry Watts, then in his 85th year.

The meeting unanimously decided that a "Life" of
Mr. Watts should be written, and I was honoured with
the commission to do the work.

When, on Oct. 10th, 1910, the materials then avail-
able for the work were handed to me, they were so few,
so confused, and, for the most part, so contradictory,
that the task seemed at first sight almost hopeless. But
as the work progressed these things faded into compara-
tive insignificance before the personality of the man they
concerned, a personality which so impressed me, that
what was begun in doubt was continued with enthusiasm,
and has ended, I hope, with some measure of success.

Apart altogether from my personal interest in the
work, I have felt, the more familiar I became with the
details of Mr. Watts's career, that his was a biography
that ought to be written. Heroes of the type of Harry
Watts are not so plentiful that we can afford to allow
them to pass away without some attempt to record what
they have done. But great men are like great moun-

vu.

tains in that, to judge them truly, we must view them
from a distance. We are too near to Harry Watts
to estimate his worth fully ; but it is most certain that
had nothing now been done to perpetuate his memory,
we should have realised our mistake in after years when
too late to rectify it. Therefore I pay a tribute of
admiration to the promoters of the book, because of
their perspicuity in recognising the necessity for such a
work, and their enterprise in carrying it through while
it was yet possible to do so.

With regard to the method adopted of presenting the
various phases of Mr. Watts's life, it seemed to me, as
explained in the text, that a list of life-saving feats in
chronological order, would not only make monotonous
reading, but would certainly not give, what I have
striven to give, a picture of Mr. Watts as he was and
as he is, and the conditioning circumstances of his life.
Therefore the particular events belonging to each period
of his life are placed together as far as possible, and as
there is a full index, the reader can turn to any incident
in a moment.

One other word of explanation is necessary. In
writing the details of his early life and of the time
before his conversion, I have but carried out Mr. Watts's
wishes, which may be summed up in Cromwell's remark
to Lely, the painter, l* Paint me as I am. If you leave
out the scars and wrinkles, I will not pay you a shilling."

It is also my hope that the book may be of value
as a work of reference in connection with some of the
matters dealt with — Sunderland as it was in the early

Vlll.

part of the last century ; shipping matters at this port in
the middle of that century ; the work of the Life-boat
and Rocket Brigade, &c. Every effort has been made
to secure trustworthy information on these matters, the
original documents being consulted wherever possible.

I tender my sincere thanks to the following gentle-
men : — Mr. C. H. Dodds, General Manager for the
River Wear Commissioners, for much useful informa-
tion ; Mr. W. J. Oliver, the local Hon. Sec. of the
Life-boat and Rocket Institutions, for the loan of
old documents; Messrs. Siebe, Gorman, & Co., Ltd.,
for permission to quote from their book, A Diving
Manual ; to Sir J. C. Lamb, the author of The Life-
boat and its work, for permission to use some of the
information contained therein ; to Messrs. Hills & Co.,
for their valuable assistance while the book was going
through the press ; and most of all are my thanks due
to our Chief Librarian, Mr. J. A. Charlton Deas, for
his patience under the affliction of my persistent in-
quiries, his perseverance in " digging out " facts
required, and his many helpful suggestions.

ALFRED SPENCER.
Sunderland, Dec, igio.

CONTENTS.

ii.
in.

IV.
V.
VI.
VII.

CHAPTER. TITLE.

I. BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS -

SUNDERLAND WHEN HARRY WATTS WAS BORN

EARLY DAYS. THE STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE -

AN EARLY MARRIAGE - - - - -

BACK TO THE SEA -

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT -

VIII. AN INTERLUDE ------

IX. AFTER THIRTY YEARS -

X. HENRY WATTS AS A DIVER - - -

XI. RECOGNITION

XII. A SAILORS' TRIBUTE

XIII. A HEARTLESS ROBBERY - - - -

XIV. THE TAY BRIDGE DISASTER -

XV. A NOVEL USE FOR A DIVER - - -

XVI. SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT DIVING -

XVII. DANGEROUS WORK

XVIII. A TRAWL NET

XIX. LIFE-BOAT SERVICES

XX. IN HARBOUR

PAGE

I-II

12-26

27-34
35-51
52-54

55-65

66-82

83-91

92-105

1 06- 1 19

120-134

135-142

HZ'1*8

i59-!7i

172-176

177-188

189-209

210-223

224-250

25»-259

LIST OF PERSONS SAVED BY HENRY WATTS - 260-263

MR. WATTS'S RELATIVES WHO WERE DROWNED - 263-264
MR. HENRY WATTS's MEDALS - 264-265

LIST OF CERTIFICATES ----- 266

ILLUSTRATIONS.

PAGB
PORTRAIT OF HENRY WATTS - FRONTISPIECE

A NIGHT SCENE IN SILVER STREET - - - - 22

4<YE HARRY watts! FOR TWO PINS aw'd SPLIT

thee skull wl' this shool !" - - - - 58

"silence, gentlemen, silence! order for a
song" 90

"one day i came upon the engine of the
train" 166

"when aw got ontiv its back aw fund mesel
in a fix" -------- 216

harry watts settled the difficulty by dashing
into the sea 248

TO HENRY WATTS

Slowly the ?narble rises to the brave,
For Crawford lies unhonoured in his grave /*
Yet Henry Watts is with us, whose high claim
Is not of slaughtered foemen put to shame.
But a life risked his countrymen to save.

This modest hero on his bosom wears
Trophies, unbought with men or women's tears,
Of deeds heroic, which old Greece or Rome
Had, sure, immortalised in some proud dome,
And poets praised through all the coming years.

But though no bard, inspired, his exploits sing,
Yet shall my Muse her humble tribute bring

To true Nobility's untitled son,

Who from his grateful townsmen oft hath won
Honours that shall no late repentance bring.

Let others boast their heaps of gory slain ;

Thine be the happier recompense to gain
Triumphs that fill with holy joy the breast,
Patient with Heaven's approving smile to rest

Secure, immortal honours to attain.

F. T.

* The grave of Jack Crawford, the hero of Camperdown, in
Sunderland Parish Churchyard, remained unmarked for fifty-seven
years, but in 1888 a handsome tombstone was erected there by
public subscription ; and in 1890 the monument to him in Mowbray
Park was unveiled. It is obvious, therefore, that the above lines,

Xll.

copied from Harry's Journal, were written before 1888. The
poem is one of several written by admirers of Henry Watts and
preserved by him in the Journal to which reference is made in the
following pages. It will be seen that in conception and power of
expression the poem is considerably above the average ; and it is
reproduced here because it reflects the deep appreciation which,
for many years, Sunderland people have had for Mr. Watts's
services to humanity.

Just when these pages were going to press Mr. James Patterson,
having read the above verses, suggested that they were the work
of the late Mr. Frederic Taylor. Mrs. Patterson kindly undertook
to make inquiries, and sent a copy of the poem to her friend,
Mrs. Taylor, at Boscombe. In her reply, Mrs. Taylor says : —
11 I feel perfectly certain that Frederic was the author of the
poem. I remember him reading it to me before he gave it to
Henry Watts, who was a great friend of his and used to come to
the Square [St. George's Square]. But I have no duplicate ; I
can only tell from memory and by the style, which is unmistak-
able."

LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

CHAPTER I

BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS.

Bravery never goes out of fashion. — Thackeray.

Heroism feels and never reasons, and therefore is always
right. — Emerson.

THE reader is asked to go back in imagina-
tion to a scene on the River Thames in
the year 1854. In consequence of the great
contamination of the Thames by the influx of
the sewage of London and the bad odours
emanating from it, an Act was passed soon
after this date empowering the Metropolitan
Board of Works to undertake its purification
by constructing new drainage. Even in 1863,
Mr. Leach, Engineer of the Conservators,
reported that " The river is dreadfully misman-
aged from its source to its mouth."
B

2 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

London was suffering from cholera ; indeed,
in this year, 1854, over 20,000 persons died
from that plague in England and Wales.

The River Thames, then, was in this year,
1854, neither more nor less than an open sewer,
and possibly no part of the sewer was worse
than that at Wapping — Wapping, famous in
song and story. But if anything could be worse
than the river at Wapping, it was the water in
Wapping Dock, which the reader may conceive
as a filthy mixture, yellow-brown in colour, and
almost of the consistency of soup.

Across the Wapping Dock Bridge one day in
the summer of the year mentioned, came two
sailors from a neighbouring vessel on their way
to the town. As they walked up the lane near
the Dock there suddenly rose a cry of " Man
overboard !"

They ran back and found that a boy had fall-
en over into the poisonous cesspool. The
bravest of men might have been excused if, for
a moment, he hesitated before plunging into
that water to rescue the lad, but one of the two
sailormen never hesitated a moment. Without
any thought of consequences, he hastily tore at

BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS 3

his coat, while his quick eye looked about seek-
ing to locate the place where the boy had gone
down.

Ah ! there he is ! For a moment a head
showed above the water and a despairing hand
frantically clutched at the air, then disappeared
again.

Curse the coat ! Would it never come off?
The sailor tore at it, but one sleeve had caught
somehow ; so without spending more time in
his efforts to detach it, he leapt over the bridge
and into the water with the coat hanging to
him by the one sleeve, much hampering his
movements.

Oh, that dive into the horrible water ! Down
into it he had to go, feeling about for the drown-
ing boy, for no ray of light could penetrate those
turbid depths. Down and down, feeling here
and there, till at last his hand came in contact
with the lad, and with the grip of a strong man
he seized him, brought him to the surface and
so to the shore.

And now, as the rescuer stood panting after
his exertions, there came to him a gold-braided
official who said,

4 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

44 My brave fellow ! You have done a noble
deed this day ! Where do you hail from ? "

44 Fra Sunnerlan', sir," was the reply.

"Well, well, then Sunderland should be proud
of you. Should ever you come to London
again call at (giving him an address), and you
shall not go unrewarded."

14 Thank'ee, sir," said the sailor, as he returned
to his ship to change his clothes.

It was not the first life this young sailor had
saved ; no, indeed, for though but a young man
there already stood to his credit a record of six-
teen lives saved by his individual exertions ; for
the young sailor was Harry Watts, of Sunder-
land, who, all unconsciously, was building up
that remarkable record of his as a saver of life.

But though not the first life saved by him, it
was fraught with more serious consequences
than any previous attempt. He had swal-
lowed a good deal of the water, and the poison
in it wrought havoc with him. By the time he
had returned to Sunderland he was so ill that
Dr. Francis was called in to attend to him. He
lay week after week as helpless as a child, and
for three months he fought with the illness be-

BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS 5

fore he got the mastery of it. It was a very
different-looking Harry Watts who then, as a
convalescent, came tottering out of his house in
Silver Street, from the Harry Watts who had
jumped into the water at Wapping Dock.

To make matters worse his long spell of ill-
ness and consequent loss of wages had strained
the modest resources of his little household to
breaking point, and for a while he had to look
helplessly on while his wife patiently made the
best battle she could for the family of five, for
there were three little children.

Now a simple confiding faith in humanity has
always been the heritage of the sons of Nep-
tune, and Harry Watts was as ingenuous, as
simple, and as frank and generous as any sailor-
man could be. And what he was in his deal-
ings with others, that, he considered as a matter
of course, others would be in their dealings with
him.

You are asked, then, to consider for a moment
the picture of this once sturdy sailor, now thin
and worn, sitting by his door-cheek, weak and
exhausted, impatiently waiting for his health
and strength to return to him, and pondering

6 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

how to provide for his helpless family, now re-
duced to the most straitened circumstances.

He had saved many lives, but no reward for
those services had ever come to him; nay, more,
no thought of reward had ever entered his
mind. What he had done had been done spon-
taneously and forgotten almost as soon as done.
Without knowing it he was in truth living up to
the great ideal of Eastern theological teaching
— doing good without any thought of personal
return.

But now, brought face to face with the bitter
problem of the merely material side of life — how
to provide for the necessities of his loved ones
— his mind presently reverted to the gold-braid-
ed official at Wapping Dock who had spoken
so bravely of the rescue, and had invited him
to call for a reward. Well, he would go there
and get the reward ; it might help him out of
his present sad circumstances.

So, urged by the iron law of necessity, long
before he was physically fit, he shipped in a
vessel called the "George Smith," bound for
London, leaving his family in such dire straits

BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS 7

that they had not a bite of bread in the house
on the day he sailed.

Arrived at Long Reach the ship had to lay
up there till the cargo was sold ; and here is the
sequel of that rescue at Wapping as told by the
rescuer :

" Wad ye be as kind, sir, as to len' me three
shilling' ?" said Harry to the skipper.

" Len' thee three shilling', Harry? What
for?"

" Wey, whin aw wes alang at Wappin' Dock
aboot three months sin, aw jumped ower efter
a lad as wes droonin'. An' a gentleman cam'
an' tell't us ti caal on 'im ef ivver aw'm alang
heer agyen."

The three shillings being advanced, Harry
set off to find his admirer. After some trouble
he succeeded, and, in his simple sailor way, told
who he was and why he had called,

"Oh, indeed," said the man with a doubtful
smile, "but we cannot believe every tale that is
told to us, you know ; if we did I don't know
where we should be landed. We have impost-
ors coming here every day, and how am I to
know but that you are ."

8 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

But that was enough. Too indignant for
words, Harry left the place and returned to his
ship.

But this incident set him thinking. To a
mind so frank and simple, the idea of claiming
to have done something which he had not done
was preposterous ; but here was a man who
thought it not only possible but probable.
What if others thought so too, how was he to
prove the truth of his assertions? Education
was uncommon among the working classes in
those days, and the strenuous struggle for bare
existence had left him no opportunity of acquir-
ing even the rudiments of an education ; he
was, in fact, like thousands of his fellows, un-
able even to read or write.

Pondering upon the matter he presently re-
solved that he would for the future, as far as
possible, have some sort of testimony to back
up his statements ; and this ultimately led to his
keeping all newspaper references to himself that
he came across, and all letters received from
those to whom he had rendered service, or from
his admirers.

After a time some good friend pasted these

BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS 9

into a big book, and these cuttings, letters, and
writings are the main building materials on
which I have had to rely in the erection of the
present work.

This Journal is unique in its way. Here are
long reports cut from papers with the names of
the journals but no dates ; little snippings,
almost indecipherable from age and use before
they were pasted into this their last resting
place, most of them without either name of
paper or date ; letters from admiring townsmen;
from grateful people rescued from drowning by
this humble hero ; notes of congratulation and
thanks from shipowners and colliery managers,
for whom the recipient, as a diver, had done
successful work ; photographs; poems too, eulo-
gising the courage and ability of " Harry Watts,
the Diver." Here at the beginning of the book
is an attempt at a biography, some sixty pages
of it, evidently written by one who felt deep
appreciation for the man of whom he wrote.
Lying between the leaves of the Journal is
yet another biographical attempt, four pages of
foolscap written by some loving hand ; and,
packed away in a small envelope, four separate

io LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

sheets containing some fifty words each, relat-
ing to incidents in Harry's religious life.

With the exception of the sixty pages of bio-
graphical notes, there has been no attempt at
sequence or chronological order, and many of
the reports and letters, though relating to thrill-
ing incidents, are limited to a few lines.

The student of Sartor Resartus will no doubt
be irresistibly reminded of the difficulties of the
editor of that remarkable book when Professor
Teufelsdrockh sent him those "Six considerable
Paper- Bags, carefully sealed and marked suc-
cessively, in Gilt China-ink, with the symbols
of the Six southern Zodiacal Signs, beginning
at Libra ; in the inside of which sealed Bags
lie miscellaneous masses of sheets, and oftener
Shreds and Snips, written in Professor Teufels-
drockh's scarce legible cursive - schrift ; and

treating of all imaginable things but of

his own personal history only at rare intervals."

Nevertheless, in this case as in that, we may
hope that patience will overcome these obs-
tacles. Having read through the Journal from
cover to cover, I rise from its perusal with a
confused mass of thoughts, facts, and incidents

BIOGRAPHICAL GENESIS n

jostling each other in the audience chamber of
my mind, like a first-night crowd in the limited
space of a theatre vestibule ; but clear and plain,
head and shoulders above the surging crowd,
stands the chief actor, commanding my atten-
tion, my respect, and my admiration.

As I consider him another thought from Sar-
tor Resartus comes to my mind : " Biography
is by nature the most universally profitable,
universally pleasant of all things : especially Bi-
ography of distinguished individuals." That
this is the biography of a man worthy of being
placed well up on any list of distinguished in-
dividuals I hope to show.

CHAPTER II

SUNDERLAND WHEN HARRY WATTS WAS BORN.

To be ignorant of what has happeiied before you were
born is to be ever a child. For what is man's lifetime
unless the memory of past events is woven with those of
earlier times ? — Cicero.

TO estimate the character of a man rightly
it is necessary to know something of the
time in which he lived, of the world into which
he was born, and more particularly of that part
of it which to him was the stage of life ; of his
surroundings, social conditions, — in a word his
environment. For though these things may not
be wholly responsible for a man's character, they
certainly do modify it and go far towards ex-
plaining it.

" Every great man," says Grant Allen in his
Life of Darwin, "is the direct cumulative pro-
duct of his physical predecessors, and works
and is worked upon in innumerable ways by the
particular environment into whose midst he is
born."

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 13

It is necessary therefore to see what were the
conditioning circumstances into which the sub-
ject of this sketch was born, for, knowing the
strength of the forces opposed to him, we shall
be the better able to estimate the greatness of
his victory.

Henry Watts was born in Silver Street, in
the East End of Sunderland, on June 15th,
1826.

Vast indeed is the difference between the Sun-
derland of the present day and the Sunderland
of 1820-30, for the growth and development of
the town in the interval, and especially during
the last thirty years, has been little short of
marvellous.

The population of Sunderland as shown by
the Census of 182 1, was 33,911. Burnett's
History of Sunderland, published in 1830, tells
us that " within these few years Monkwear-
mouth is considerably improved. Instead of
bleak ballast hills, these hills are now shrub-
beries, or are in pastures."

In 1826 the first railway (as we now know
them) was yet to be built. There was one de-
livery of letters per day — if all went well with

i4 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

the coach which conveyed them — and a journey-
to London was a long, a costly, and sometimes
a risky business. The town of Seaham Harbour
and the collieries surrounding it were not then in
existence, for " on the 28th of November, 1828,
the first stones of the pier and the new town of
Port Seaham were laid by the Marquis of Lon-
donderry and his son, Viscount Seaham."

Sunderland had just been lighted with gas,
though the privilege did not extend to the whole
of the town ; and the same applied to the water
supply. Waterworks had been established at
the West part of Bishopwearmouth, and the
water was "conveyed in pipes to the houses o(
the more respectable inhabitants."

Jack Crawford, the hero of Camperdown,
was then living in Sunderland in the enjoyment
of his pension of ^30 a year ; a cattle market
was held fortnightly in the town, and there was
a half-yearly hiring for servants. What is now
called the Old Market did not then exist.

A plan of the town in Garbutt's History of
Sunderland, published in 18 19, shows nothing
but fields to the south and west of Norfolk
Street, except that there were a few small dwel-

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 15

ling houses to the west of what is now Fawcett
Street. Indeed, the whole business part of the
town then, and for many years afterwards, was
in High Street, to the eastward of Norfolk
Street, much of the residential property being
in the streets which ran off from High Street
to the south and north.

As to the condition of the streets, it is inte-
resting to note that " Some years ago the Parish
of Sunderland gave a scavenger ^25 a-year to
take the manure from the streets ; in 1827 they
received ^160 per year from a scavenger for
the liberty to take it away." With the streets in
such a condition as this implies, it is not sur-
prising that epidemics were frequent and severe,
or that the cholera took such a ready hold of
the town in 1831.

An Improvement Act for "cleansing, light-
ing, watching and otherwise improving the
town," was obtained in 1826, and Commission-
ers were appointed to put the Act into force —
not before time apparently.

The Pier — the old South Pier — is spoken of
as " Ranking as high in point of utility and
elegance as any in his Majesty's dominions."

16 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

We of the present day are so accustomed to
the many and great improvements in the town,
that we are rather apt to under-rate them. It
was not so in those days, as will be seen from
the following description of the Port of Sunder-
land, written by a Mr. R. Dodds, civil engineer,
who had visited the town to make a survey of
Sunderland Harbour : —

11 Does anyone wish to have a just idea of the
extensive trade of this Port ? let him go where
I once stood. (The South Pier.) No sooner
there than casting my eyes to the Southward,
over the curling crystal flood, as Homer beau-
tifully observes, I saw a wood of ships, a zephyr
was gently fanning them to the port, all sails
drew, and their streamers were waving in the
wind. This prominent point, the pier end, where
I stood, stretching out into the sea, soon became
thronged. Here with glad steps came some of
Eve's fairest daughters ; some hung on their
arm the cherub form, and by their side the ten-
der offspring led. What glittering eyes of glad-
ness were fixed on this fleet ; some to husbands,
some to lovers. Does the artist want a subject
of nature to paint joy and gladness by? He

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 17

cannot be better served than here. And for sad-
ness, on the days of departure, he would see the
half-closed eye with the crystal tear dropping
down many a fair cheek."

But in spite of all the sentimental Mr. Dodds
had to say, there was yet no dock of any kind
for the "wood of ships" to take refuge in, nor
was there to be for another dozen years, when
the North Dock was opened (1839).

Mr. Watts affirms that so badly was the river
attended to in those days that he could wade
across it near the mouth.

The Committee of the Commissioners ap-
pointed to consider the suggestion " of forming
a Wet Dock at Sunderland," refused to have
anything to do with such a scheme, "leaving
the matter perfectly open to any body of adven-
turers who may be inclined to undertake the
same," and adding that "as far as the Commis-
sioners are concerned as a body, the idea of
forming a Wet Dock falls to the ground." And
there it remained till 1850, when the South
Dock was opened.

In 1826, when Harry Watts was born, the
keelmen and casters were in the hey-day of

18 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

their prosperity, they and the sailors forming
the majority of the population of the town.
The coal was brought down the river in keels
to the ships waiting for it, and the casters were
the men who shovelled, or cast it from the keels
into the ships. Like the sailors they were rough,
unlettered men, but hardy, brave, and generous,
and possessed of native wit and force of char-
acter.

The circumstances of the Watts family will
be dealt with in the next chapter, but it is neces-
sary to mention here the condition of the class
of people in Sunderland to which that family
belonged.

The poor were very poor, and there were
many of them. The following is extracted from
the private diary of a Mr. Edward Atkinson, a
grocer, who had a shop down High Street East,
just by Wylam's Wharf, and who died in 1804
at the age of 71. The diary is in the posses-
sion of a lady in the town, who kindly allowed
me to make extracts from it. The facts and
figures given are not to be found in any local
history, and are therefore the more valuable.
Mr. Atkinson gives the actual figures of the

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 19

cost of maintaining the poor in each of the Par-
ishes of Bishopwearmouth, Bishopwearmouth
Panns, and Monkwearmouth, with the M Man-
ner of laying on the Poor Cess," and many other
interesting details. To give the whole of the
figures might tire the reader, but we may take
the Sunderland Parish as an example.

" The manner of laying on the Poor Cess at
Sunderland :

Year 1771, 3^d. per £ per month on real (estate?)
ifd. per keel on ships.
3^d. per coal keel per month.
3^d. on every 20/- of stock.
" In the year 1 77 1, expended on maintaining
the poor, ,£1,185 1 3s- 4^."

In 1786 the amount had risen to £2, 104 9s. 3s.,
and in 1790 the Sunderland rate is given as :
7^d. per month per £ rental 12 months.
7^d. per month for keels or lighters.
3|d. per month per keel to shipping.
7^d. for every 20/- stock in trade.
M May 1790 to May 1791, Poor Cess ,£1,985
13s. 3d. The total number of paupers in Sun-
derland in 1790-1 was 1,106, of whom 931 be-
long to Sunderland Parish."

20 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Mr. Atkinson states that the number of paup-
ers so increased that the Workhouse could not
hold them, and it became necessary, for the sec-
ond time, to make an addition to the building at
a cost of ^600. "This sum," says the diarist,
"will be very difficult to raise from the present
inhabitants, particularly as a great number of
the opulent part of the inhabitants have re-
moved from the Parish to reside to avoid pay-
ing the great and increasing poor rate. Of the
above men are 71 shipowners removed into the
township of Bishopwearmouth ; and several
more of the wealthiest say they will remove if
steps be not taken to reduce the rate."

The figures given may seem small compared
with our present expenditure, but it must be re-
membered that the total population of Sunder-
land at that time barely exceeded 20,000. But
in Sunderland Parish, with which we are chiefly
concerned, Mr. Atkinson's figures show that
about one in every ten of the population was a
pauper, for in 1791 the population of the Parish
was barely 1 1,000.

In the early part of the nineteenth century
things had not improved. Mr. Watts well re-

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 21

members the terrible struggle for existence
among the poor, and particularly among the
children. Every day scores of them spent the
greater part of their time on the beach gather-
ing coals, and trying to find anything edible to
satisfy their hunger. The poverty of the work-
ers generally was very great, and they had to
live on the very cheapest and commonest food.
There was no attempt at education apart from
what was done by the Sunday Schools ; indeed,
the children of the working people had to begin
work almost as soon as they could walk.

The class of workers into which Harry Watts
was born were housed as badly as they were
fed, and scarcely any attention was paid to sani-
tation.

Yet occasionally, when the innate human
craving for relaxation and enjoyment insisted
upon being satisfied, the sans-culottes would
come out of their dark rooms and their cellars,
and gather together for festivity in the open
streets at night. For years, according to Mr.
Watts, it was the custom now and again for the
people in Silver Street, and in other streets too,
to gather wood and coals and build huge bon-

22 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

fires in the middle of the street, perhaps six or
seven of them along the length of the street.
From their meagre resources they would sub-
scribe to a common fund wherewith to purchase
a cask of small beer. A large pan of pease-
pudding was made, which, with the beer, served
for M refreshments." A fiddler was engaged or
"pressed" into the service, and dancing was
indulged in, the festivities lasting till the "wee
sma' oors ayont the twal'," till, in fact, the fires
had burnt out for want of fuel.

A strange, weird scene — the roar and crackle
of the fires ; the wavering smoke, half hiding
the fantastic figures as they dance about the fire
with rude jest and laughter ; the old people
sitting mumbling on their doorsteps, wishing
but not daring to take part in the ceremonies
— a scene reminiscent of Ibsen's Peer Gynt,
when the Trolls, Gnomes, and Brownies, to
Grieg's distracting music, dance Peer to the
verge of madness.

A rather striking picture of Sunderland at
the period we are dealing with, and of the social
life of the workers, is given in a little pamphlet
containing the reminiscences of the late Thomas

A NIGHT SCENE IN SILVER STREET.

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 23

Sanderson. Many people in Sunderland will
remember "Tommy, the Bellman," a quaint old
man, who wrote verses about anything and
everything on the smallest provocation, wrote
them, indeed, without any provocation whatever.
Fairness compels one to say that his "poetry"
was akin to that which Mr. Silas Wegg evolved
for the edification of Mr. Boffin ; but in spite of
this little failing of his, Mr. Sanderson's book
shows him to have been a man of considerable
ability, and but for the fact that he was cursed
with a roving disposition, and was "everything
by turns and nothing long," he might have end-
ed his days in a position of more affluence than
that of Town Crier.

Sanderson was born in 1808 in a house near
Hind's Bridge, and the hardness of his life as a
child may be judged from the fact that he and
his father " used to go into the woods to gather
acorns, which we roasted and ate for food." He
was apprenticed as a shipwright, and was mar-
ried in 1830 at the age of twenty-two, before he
was out of his apprenticeship, and when his
wages were seven shillings a week !

24 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

About 1820 he tells us, "salt was at this
time 4<d. or 5<d. a pound, sugar 1/-, coffee 2/-, tea
10/-, and flour 5/- a stone, and quite unsound."
Flour in their household, when he was a boy,
was quite out of the question owing to its price,
and his mother often sent him round to several
bakers' shops to get samples, which she mixed
together and made into a cake to satisfy their
hunger. Most of the people made their own
salt, candles, and matches.

He tells how he once saw a man in the stocks
on Bishopwearmouth Green ; and here is an
amusing story he relates of one Jimmy Donald-
son, the sexton of Bishopwearmouth Church : —

" The good folks of Bishopwearmouth were
in the habit of having a hot cake for breakfast
on a Sunday morning, about the diameter of
twenty inches, some plain kneaded and others
with currants, &c. in, called in the common ver-
nacular 'singing ninnies.' Jimmy had incauti-
ously laid his oven bottom with old tombstones,
and once, through stress of business, he omitted
to use his tins. The result was that many of
the cakes bore the impress of a death's head and
cross-bones, ' Departed this life,' &c."

WHEN WATTS WAS BORN 25

The author goes on to say, " Sunderland was
at this time in a wretched condition. The wages
of shipwrights (those employed) about 15/- per
week, many of whom were glad to help in cut-
ting away Houghton-le-Spring embankment at
1/6 a-day.

" The keelmen were in arms, setting fire to
and pulling down the staithes and railway bridge
across Galley's Gill. There was only one drap-
er's shop in Bishopwearmouth, between Queen
Street and Dunning Street, High Street, kept
at that time by a Mr. Crass, who appeared to
do little trade, for there seemed to be no middle-
class people ; thousands excessively poor with
but few wealthy.

"You might have walked down High Street
and have seen scarcely a woman with a gown
on, except on Sundays, their habiliments being
a calamankey* petticoat, a cotton jacket, and
linen blue-and-white-checked apron with a bib.
These native women might have been seen
wending their way to work in the fields with
children on their backs. No gas, no flagging,

* Calamanco, woollen stuff, of a fine gloss, and checkered in
the warp.

26 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

no policemen, no market-place, a few sentry
boxes, and a few old men, as watchmen, who
patrolled the streets calling the hour and the
state of the weather ; pigs running about and
rutting up the streets, often with boys astride
their backs. I saw a man pilloried at the foot
of Church Street being pelted with rotten
eggs, &c.M

Such, then, was the Sunderland into which
Henry Watts was born, and the conditions which
environed him. It is the purpose of this his-
tory to follow him in his struggle with those
conditions, and to see how, though handicapped
to an extent which might well have justified
despair, he yet rendered an account of himself
which many born in more favourable circum-
stances might envy.

CHAPTER III

EARLY DAYS. THE STRUGGLE FOR EXISTENCE.

Let not Ambition mock their useful toil,
Their homely joys and destiny obscure ;

Nor Grandeur hear, with a disdainful smile,
The short and simple annals oj the poor.

— Gray's ' 'Elegy."

WILLIAM Watts and Elizabeth his wife,
the parents of Henry, lived in Silver
Street for some years before Henry was born,
the place where the house stood being now oc-
cupied by the south-west corner of Harrison's
buildings. There were five children — Isabella,
William, Ellen, James, and Henry, the subject
of this sketch being the youngest. Mrs. Watts
died when Henry was but seven years old, so
that he remembers very little about her ; his
sisters and his brother James lived to a ripe old
age. His brother William was drowned at sea,
his ship, the " Richard," being driven ashore at
Tenby, in Carmarthen Bay, in a gale of wind.

28 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Henry tells the story of this wreck with great
feeling, and especially one incident connected
with it. His brother, as the ship drove ashore,
made for the rigging, but a huge wave over-
whelmed him and he was seen no more. A few
of the crew were got ashore by means of the
life-line and chair, the last to leave being a sea-
man named Robert Clasper, "the only man in
the ship," says Henry, "who cared anything
about religion." Scarcely had the chair with
Clasper in it left the ship, than the backstay, to
which the life-line was fast, broke, and then
nothing could save him. He was last seen hold-
ing up his clasped hands and singing "Jesu,
lover of my soul." " A grand thing ti dee,
an' a rare brave man!" says Henry fervently.

Henry's father was a mariner, but he can
only remember his father making one voyage,
in a ship called the " Castlereagh." After this
he became a confirmed invalid and spent most
of his time in bed, being a great sufferer from
rheumatism.

Nor is this to be wondered at considering the
place in which the family lived. Henry de-
scribes it as an underground kitchen or cellar.

EARLY DAYS 29

At any rate the place was below the level of the
ground, for there were some half dozen steps
leading down into it, and though that particular
house is done away with, there are still plenty
of similar tenements to be seen in Silver Street
at the present day.

Not far from the place where the Watts family
lived was a well which overflowed whenever it
rained heavily, and the water ran into their room,
so that it was no uncommon thing for the whole
of the family to be engaged in baling out the
water.

In this one unhealthy room the family lived
during the whole of Henry's childhood. There,
too, the mother died, and the father lay ill for
years, unable to do anything towards the sup-
port of his family. The sisters obtained an oc-
casional day's washing, and the two younger
boys ran errands, or joined other children on
the beach, gathering coal, and eagerly watching
for any flotsam or jetsam which might come
ashore. No doubt Harry inherited his love for
the sea, but that love was developed and cher-
ished by the many long days spent on the sea
shore during his childhood. He says that he

3o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

took to the water as naturally as a duck, and he
cannot remember the time when he could not
swim.

By-and-bye a little relief — a very little relief
— was obtained by James securing a job at a
baker's shop, but as the food he got there was
reckoned as part of his wages, his earnings in
money came to but a very small sum per week.
Still, it was one mouth less to feed, and that was
something.

Henry and his brother James attended Sun-
day School, but as they had neither shoes nor
stockings, and no clothes but those they wore
during the week (which were not of the Sun-
day School type), the other boys attending the
school refused to sit beside them. Naturally
they felt this very much, and after a while left
the school altogether and returned to Neptune's
playground, the sea beach, where there was no
danger of them being ostracised.

But a kindly teacher came to make enquiries
after them, and on learning the reason for their
absence, made an arrangement with them which
enabled them to attend the school once more.
He provided each of them with an outfit, for

EARLY DAYS 31

which the boys had to go every Sunday morn-
ing. They carried these clothes home in a bag,
and, having dressed themselves, they marched
off bravely enough to the school, wore the clothes
all Sunday and returned them on the Monday
morning. This was repeated every week for a
long time. In spite of their weekly attendance
at the school, however, they never acquired any
knowledge of reading or writing.*

The childhood of Henry Watts ceased at the
age of nine, for at that age he went to work.
Thenceforth all thoughts of play or frolic had
to be put aside, and he had to think, to devise,
and to act, for he had become a breadwinner,
and a great part of the responsibility of the
household rested on him.

"Think of it, my Lords and Gentlemen.
Think of it, Right Reverends and Wrong Rev-
erends of every order. Think of it men and
women born with heavenly compassion in your
hearts," a child of nine going out into the great
world to fight the battle of life !

* The teacher was a Mr. Stafford, who kept a baker's shop,
and it was he who found work for James Watts. In the matter
of providing- clothes for the boys Mr. Stafford was assisted by
another teacher, a Mrs. Binks.

32 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

He went to work at the Garrison Pottery,
which then stood opposite the old Quaker Meet-
ing House at the East End of the town, and he
received a wage of one shilling and sixpence
a week !

"Think of it, my Lords and Gentlemen.
Think of it, Right Reverends and Wrong Rev-
erends of every order," a child of nine forced
to toil every day for twelve long hours for three-
pence ! and no one, no Government, or repre-
sentative of a Government, to say "You're
doing him a great wrong and shall do it no
longer." One begins to understand why Mrs.
Browning was moved to write The Cry of the
Children, the bitter cry of the thousands of
little Watts and Smiths all over the kingdom,
who were

H Weeping in the playtime of the others,
In the country of the free."

Think of the thousands who went down in
the fight for every one who survived ! If
the few who did survive that terrible struggle
for existence, who, by force of character and
strength of will, managed to gain the victory
over circumstances, if these few lack what we

EARLY DAYS 33

call education, shall we blame or despise them,
knowing that

li . . . knowledge to their eyes her ample page,
Rich with the spoils of time, did ne'er unroll :
Chill Penury repressed their noble rage,

And froze the genial current of their soul."

After working at the Pottery for some time
Henry went to a weaving factory in Fitter's
Row, and worked there till he was thirteen
years old. A growing lad, with a hunger that
was scarcely ever satisfied — or satisfiable with
what his puny hands could earn. And this
very hunger was the main factor in sending him
to sea. Among his boy acquaintances were
some who had bound themselves apprentices to
the sea, and hearing from them that they always
had plenty to eat, Harry resolved to become an
apprentice too, the more so as he had always
had a longing to go to sea. So he promptly
walked out to Pallion, got himself bound ap-
prentice, was placed on board the brig " Lena,"
299 tons burden, Captain Gage, and went out
to Quebec in her.

Here his shore life may be said to have ended.
Henceforth he becomes semi-amphibious, suffer-

34 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

ing storm and shipwreck, " in journeyings often,
in perils of waters, ... in perils of robbers, in
perils in the sea," often saving others from death
and himself escaping as by a miracle, — a stormy,
tempestuous voyaging, yet arriving at last, after
seventy years of struggle and stress, at a haven
of rest.

CHAPTER IV

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE.

Cease, rude Boreas, blustering railer !

List, ye landsmen all, to me /
Messmates, hear a brother sailor

Sing the dangers of the sea.

— G. A. Stevens "The Storm. "

THE Church registers of the Parish in which
Harry was born have been searched in
vain for the record of his birth, and one is forced
to the conclusion that, with the characteristic in-
difference of those days to such matters, the
birth was never registered. Nevertheless, ex-
haustive inquiries in other directions have satis-
fied me that the date already given, June 15,
1826, is the correct date of his birth. But in
this matter of dates the above is not the only
difficulty encountered. Henry was apprenticed
to the sea in 1839, and the following Indentures
are given as a curiosity in contradiction. The
two Indentures are in excellent preservation: —

36 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

INDENTURE No. I.

SUNDERLAND

1 2th FEB Y., 1842.

This Indenture

has been registered wider Act

5 & 6

William IV., Ch. i9.

Dated i<

5th June, 1839.

Indenture of Apprenticeship for six years.

HENRY WATT

TO

MR. JAMES LEITHEAD.

WAGES.

I st

year

£s 10

0

2nd

do.

• £$ 10

0

3rd

do.

£l 10

0

4th

do.

£s 10

0

5th

do.

£9 10

0

6th

do.

£\0 IO

0

12s. a year in lieu of washing ;
8s. a week for meat money.

RIDLEY

Atty

Bishop Wearth.

THIS INDENTURE made the nineteenth day of
June the second year of the Reign of our Sovereign
Lady VICTORIA, by the Grace of God, of the
United Kingdom of GREAT BRITAIN AND
IRELAND, QUEEN, Defender of the Faith, and

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 37

in the Year of our Lord One Thousand Eight Hun-
dred and thirty nine, BETWEEN Henry Watt, son
of William Watt of Sunderland in the County of
Durham, Sailor, aged fifteen of the One Part, and
James Leithead of the parish of Bishop Wearmouth
in the same County Shipowner of the Other Part,
WITNESSETH that the said Henry Watt hath, of
his free will, and with the consent of his Father
put and bound himself apprentice unto the said
James Leithead with him, his executors, and ad-
ministrators, after the manner of an apprentice, to
dwell, remain, and serve, from the 19 June 1839
for and during, and unto the full end and term of
six years, from thence next ensuing, fully to be
complete and ended ; during all which term, the
said apprentice his said master will well and faith-
fully serve, his secrets keep, his lawful commands
everywhere do and execute ; hurt or damage to his
said master he will not do, consent to, or allow to
be done by others, but, to the utmost of his power
will hinder the same, and forthwith his said master
thereof warn ; taverns or alehouses he will not fre-
quent, unless about his said master's business ; at
dice, cards, tables, bowls, or any unlawful games,
he will not play ; the goods of his said master he
will not embezzle, or waste, or lend, or give to any
person or persons, without his said master's license;
matrimony, during the said term he will not con-
tract ; nor, from the service of his said master,
without his consent, at any time, absent himself;

38 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

but, as a true and faithful apprentice, will demean
and behave himself towards his master, his family,
executors, or administrators, during the said term ;
and true and just accounts of his said master's
goods, chattels, and money, committed to his
charge, or which shall come into his hands, faith-
fully he will give, at all times, when thereunto re-
quired by his said master, his executors, or admin-
istrators ; and will also render an account of, and
well and truly pay, or cause to be paid unto his
said master, his executors or administrators, all
such wages, prize money, and other sum or sums
of money, as shall become due and payable unto
him from her Majesty, her heirs or successors, or
any other person, in case he shall be impressed,
enter, or go into her Majesty's service, or any other
service during the said term.

IN CONSIDERATION WHEREOF the said James
Leithead doth hereby covenant, promise and agree
to and with the said Henry Watt the apprentice,
that the said James Leithead, his executors, admin-
istrators, or assigns, shall and will teach, learn,
and inform him, the said apprentice, or cause him
to be taught, learned, and informed in the art, trade,
or business of a MARINER, or SEAMAN, with
the circumstance thereunto belonging ; and shall
and will find and provide for the said apprentice
sufficient meat, drink, and lodging ; and to pay
unto him the sum of twelve shillings yearly during
the said term in lieu of washing ; and also pay unto

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 39

him the sum of FORTY EIGHT POUNDS, of
lawful money, current in Great Britain, in manner
following (that is to say) the sum of Five pounds
ten shillings for the first year, Six pounds ten shil-
lings for the second year, Seven pounds ten shillings
for the third year, Eight pounds ten shillings for the
fourth year, Nine pounds ten shillings for the fifth
year, and Ten pounds ten shillings for the sixth and
last year, and if the said apprentice serve his time
faithfully the said James Leithead doth agree to pay
him the sum of Three pounds for so doing. And
that the said James Leithead shall pay for the Meat
Drink and Lodging of the said apprentice when in
the harbour of Sunderland at the rate of eight shil-
lings per week, the said Henry Watt finding and
providing himself with all manner of sea-bedding,
wearing apparel, and other necessaries. And it is
hereby agreed between the said parties that the said
James Leithead, his executors or administrators,
shall and may, from time to time during the said
term, deduct and retain out of the several yearly
payments above mentioned, all such sum or sums
of money as he or they shall at any time during the
said term disburse or lay out in the buying of any
apparel, sea-bedding, or other necessaries for the
apprentice, as need shall require.
AND for the true performance of all and singular
the covenants and agreements aforesaid, each of
them, the said Henry Watt and James Leithead
doth hereby bind and oblige himself, his heirs, ex-

4o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

ecutors, and administrators, unto the other of them,
his executors and administrators in the penal sum
of One Hundred Pounds of lawful money, current
in Great Britain, firmly by these presents.
IN WITNESS whereof the said parties to these
presents have hereunto set their hands and seals
the day and year first above written.

Signed, sealed, and delivered by the

above named in the presence of*

SEAL.
SEAL.

INDENTURE No. 2.

Custom House,

SUNDERLAND,

2 7 'th June, i8jg.

This Indenture has been REGISTERED per Act 5 & 6
WILLIAM IV., Ch. ig.

" LENA" 299 Tons.
Dated 20th June 1839.

INDENTURE of Apprenticeship for seven years.
HENRY WATT

TO

MR. JAS. LEITHEAD.

* This Indenture, though duly registered, is unsigned.

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 41

WAGES.

1st year .

^4 15 0

2nd do.

^5 5 0

3rd do.

£5 15 O

4th do.

• & 5 0

5th do. .

^700

6th do. .

£7 15 0

7th do. .

• £B 5 0

12s. a year in lieu of washing ;
8s. per week for meat money.

RIDLEY

Bishopwth.

THIS INDENTURE made the twentieth day of
June in the third year of the Reign of our Sovereign
Lady Victoria by the Grace of God, of the United
Kingdom of GREAT BRITAIN AND IRELAND,
Queen, Defender of the Faith, and in the Year of
our Lord One Thousand Eight Hundred and Thirty
Nine. BETWEEN Henry Watt son of William
Watt of Sunderland near the sea in the County of
Durham aged thirteen years of the One Part, and
James Leithead of the Parish of Bishopwearmouth
in the same County Ship Owner of the Other Part,
WITNESSETH, that the said Henry Watt hath of
his free will, and with the consent of his father put
and bound himself Apprentice unto the said James
Leithead with him, his Executors, and Administra-

42 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

tors, after the Manner of an Apprentice, to dwell,
remain, and serve, from the fifteenth day of June
instant for, and during, and unto the full end and
term of seven years from thence next ensuing, fully
to be complete and ended ; during all which term
the said Apprentice his said master will well and
faithfully serve, his secrets keep, his lawful com-
mands everywhere do and execute, hurt or damage
to his said master he will not do, consent to, or
allow to be done by others, but to the utmost of his
Power will hinder the same, and forthwith his said
master thereof warn. Taverns or Alehouses he
will not frequent, unless about his said Master's
business. At Dice, Cards, Tables, Bowls, or any
other unlawful Games, he will not play. The Goods
of his said Master he will not embezzle, or waste,
or lend, or give to any Person or Persons, without
his said Master's License. Matrimony during the
said term he will not contract; nor from the Service
of his said Master without his consent at any time
absent himself; but as a true and faithful Appren-
tice will demean and behave himself towards his
said Master, his Family, Executors, and Adminis-
trators during the said term ; and true and just
accounts of his said Master's Goods, Chattels, and
Money committed to his charge or which shall come
to his hands faithfully he will give at all times
when thereunto required by his Master, his Execu-
tors, or Administrators. And will also render an
account of and well and truly pay or cause to be

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 43

paid unto his said Master, his Executors, or
Administrators, all such wages, prize-money, and
other SUM or SUMS of money as shall become
due and payable unto him from Her Majesty, her
Heirs, or successors, or any other Person, in case
he shall be impressed, enter, or go into Her
Majesty's Service or any other service during the
said term.

IN CONSIDERATION whereof the said James
Leithead doth hereby covenant, promise and agree
to and with the said Henry Watt the Apprentice,
that he the said James Leithead, his Executors,
Administrators, or Assigns, shall and will teach,
learn, and inform him the said Apprentice, or cause
him to be taught, learned, and informed in the Art,
Trade, or Business of a Mariner or Seaman with
the circumstance thereunto belonging. And shall
and will find and provide for the said Apprentice
sufficient Meat, Drink, and Lodging, and pay unto
him the Sum of twelve shillings yearly during the
said term in lieu of washing, and also pay unto him
the Sum of Forty Five Pounds of lawful money
current in GREAT BRITAIN in manner following
(that is to say) four pounds fifteen shillings for the
first year, five pounds five shillings for the second
year, five pounds fifteen shillings for the third year,
six pounds five shillings for the fourth year, seven
pounds for the fifth year, seven pounds fifteen
shillings for the sixth year, and eight pounds five
shillings for the seventh year. The said Henry

44 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Watt finding and providing himself with all Manner
of Sea Bedding, Wearing Apparel, and other neces-
saries. And it is hereby agreed between the said
parties that the said James Leithead, his Executors,
or Administrators shall and may from time to time
during the said term deduct and retain out of the
several yearly Payments above mentioned all such
Sum or Sums of money as he or they shall at any
time during the said term disburse or lay out in the
buying of any Apparel, Sea Bedding, or other
necessaries for the Apprentice as need shall require.
And for the true performance of all and singular
the Covenants and Agreements aforesaid, each of
them, the said Henry Watt and James Leithead
doth hereby bind and oblige himself, his Heirs,
Executors, and Administrators in the Penal Sum of
One Hundred Pounds of lawful money current in
GREAT BRITAIN firmly by these presents.
IN WITNESS whereof the said parties to these
presents have hereunto set their hands and seals
the day and year first above written.

The mark
HENRY X WATT. seal.

of
JAMES LEITHEAD. seal.

Signed, sealed, and delivered by the
above named parties in the presence of

JOSH RIDLEY, Solr., Bpwth.
JOHN X HOPKIN'S mark.

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 45

The said James Leithead doth agree to pay
to the said Apprentice the further sum of
Five Pounds if the said Apprentice do
faithfully serve his Apprenticeship.

Queen Victoria having succeeded to the throne
on June 20th, 1837, the 19th of June, 1839,
would be the last day of the second year of her
reign, and the 20th of June, 1839, when the
second Indenture was signed, the first day of
the third year of her reign, so that there is no
discrepancy here. But why the boy should be
said to be fifteen years old on the 19th of June
and thirteen years old on the 20th, I cannot dis-
cover ; nor why he is bound for six years in the
one case and seven years in the other. It will
also be noticed that there is no " s " to the name
in either case ; this is a mistake, as the correct
name is Watts.

As to the age, as a matter of fact neither
of the Indentures is correct, for the date of his
birth being satisfactorily established as June
15th, 1826, he would be in his fourteenth year
on June 19th, 1839.

There are other contradictions in dates, but
no further reference will be made to them.

46 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Where dates are given, every effort has been
made to verify them, and they may be taken as
correct.

Young Harry Watts sailed away, then, in the
brig " Lena" to Quebec on his first voyage just
when he had entered his fourteenth year. His
last duty before leaving was to go and say
"Good-bye" to his father, a last good-bye as it
proved to be, for his father, who was then but
fifty-three, died before Henry arrived home
again. He was very ill when the lad went to
see him, and his last words to him were, "Good-
bye Harry, I don't think I shall live to see thee
any more. Be a good boy and serve your ap-
prenticeship well."

And so the lad set out on his adventures with
a heavy heart after all, instead of a light one.

A sailor's life in those days was a rough one
indeed. "A dog's life," says Harry; yet,
strange to say, rough as the men were they
took every care of this boy, and saw that he
was well provided for according to their means,
their kindness being ascribed by Harry to the
fact that they were Sunderland men and knew
how the family was situated.

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 47

It is interesting to note that the wages of sea-
men in those days were £2 10s. to £2 15s. a
month for a voyage to America.

When the " Lena " arrived at Quebec the men
went ashore and "all got drunk as usual," and
as a consequence were put into gaol.

In explanation of this the reader must re-
member the condition of things then. Tem-
perance was a new thing, and total abstinence
a much greater novelty still. Father Mathew,
in Ireland, was just beginning his great work
in the cause of temperance ; and the teetotal
movement, originated in Preston in 1833, was
trying, but not very successfully, to fight its
way into public favour. Indeed, at this time
and for many years afterwards, teetotallers were
looked upon as foolish fanatics whose main de-
sire was to "rob the poor man of his beer."
The reader is asked to remember this when we
come to deal with a later phase of Henry's life.

The crew of the " Lena" being all drunk and
in gaol, it fell to the lot of Harry and his fellow
apprentice, a boy named Nicholson, to take the
men's dinners to them. While going from the
ship to the quay Nicholson fell overboard and

48 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

was in imminent danger of being drowned, when
Harry, who was following, seeing his danger,
immediately jumped over after him, and swam
with him to a raft of timber — the first of the
long list of lives saved by him.

When the " Lena " arrived in London from
Quebec, Henry learnt of the death of his
father, and the captain, who broke the sad
news to him, told him that his two sisters and
his brother James were now homeless.

11 Ay dearie me, sir," said Henry in great dis-
tress, " canna' we send 'em somethin' oot o' my
bit savins ?" and this was done.

His second voyage was in the "Cowen," be-
longing to Messrs. Leithead and Spence, of Sun-
derland, Captain Luckley. While at Miramichi
the captain went to buy a canoe. In coming
off with it he had nearly reached the ship when
the canoe upset, and the captain was in danger
of being drowned. Harry Watts was waiting
at the side of the ship to receive the skipper,
and as soon as he saw Capt. Luckley struggling
in the water, he picked up the end of a rope
and jumped overboard, swam to the captain,
fastened the rope round him, and helped him to

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 49

the ladder which was hanging over the ship's
side.

The voyage of the u Cowen " lasted about
three months, and then Harry went to the ship
" James," coasting in her for a few months,
no incident of importance happening during
this time.

But when he was just past his eighteenth
year, towards the end of 1844, ne was m a ship
called the " United Kingdom," Captain Wallace,
and on the voyage home from Quebec to New-
castle with a cargo of timber, the ship was caught
in a heavy gale in the Pentland Firth. The
Firth was running like a mill race, and the sea
"boiling like a kail pot." There was, as usual,
a big deck cargo, and during the storm a huge
sea broke on board, lifted the deck cargo up
and over, and a boy named George Watson with
it. The lad would assuredly have been drowned,
for there was no chance of lowering a boat in
such a sea, but Harry, seeing the danger, seized
a rope, jumped after the lad, and after a despe-
rate tussle with wind and water succeeded in
bringing him aboard. The boy George Watson,
it is interesting to know, was the father of the

50 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

present Councillor Watson, and he left a testi-
mony to the bravery of the act which saved his
life.

Captain Wallace, the Master of the " United
Kingdom," came to a sad end, being murdered
in a most cowardly manner. Mr. Watts tells
how Captain Wallace, having become a North
Sea Pilot, was about to take a ship out from
Sunderland, when hearing a dispute between
the captain and a seaman, he interfered. This
so enraged the seaman that he followed Wallace
and stabbed him in the back, killing him. For
this act the man was tried and hanged.

Young Watts's next ship was the "Protector."
While lying at Woolwich (1845), Harry was
working in the fore part of the ship, when a
barge loaded with sand was seen to capsize
suddenly, and the two men belonging to her
were thrown into the water. Jumping into his
ship's boat, Harry pulled to the men and arrived
in time to save them both.

" Did you get any reward for these doings,
Harry?" he was asked as he, by request, told
the story of the rescue.

THE CALL OF NEPTUNE 51

"Rewaard !" he exclaimed with astonishment,
11 wey, sartinlees nut ; nivver thowt o' sich a
thing. But we helped the two men wi' dry
claes an' things."

Thus at the age of nineteen he had already
saved five lives. And here we must interrupt
the record of life-saving to consider a fresh
phase of his career.

CHAPTER V

AN EARLY MARRIAGE.

We should marry to please ourselves, not other people.

— Isaac Bickerstaff.

IN the latter part of 1846, when he had just
turned twenty and was only a few months
out of his apprenticeship, Henry Watts married
his first'wife, Rebecca Smith, who was the same
age as himself.

Before the reader begins to denounce this
early marriage as a foolish and improvident act,
let him consider the circumstances of the case.
Both these young people were orphans, and
neither of them had a home. Therefore they
could not be much worse off in any case, and
as the chance of being better off for many
years to come was extremely problematical, they
decided to marry, their only fortune being youth
and good health.

They set up house in King's Entry, in Silver
Street, " wi' scarcely a thing ti put into it,"

AN EARLY MARRIAGE 53

said Harry. They had very little to begin with,
but such as they had they made the best of.

Asked as to the marriage customs of the time,
he said, "What wes the merriage customs? Wey,
aw divvent remember ony except that we used
te gan ti chorch linked arm-an-arm, half-a-dozen
couples, mevies ; an' when the merriage wes
ower we'd aal gan hyam an1 get drunk. Aye,
things wes bad i' them days ; ignorant we wes
an* didn't knaw ony better."

Notwithstanding, Henry and his wife lived
happily enough, and it may be said here that,
her devotion to him really cost her her life.
The incident, though out of chronological order,
may be fitly related here.

They had been married a little over ten years,
and Henry was returning from London to Sun-
derland in the ship " John Murray," when they
ran into a gale of wind off Sunderland. The
captain tried to run for the harbour, but when
about to enter, thought that there would not be
enough water on the bar, so he turned the ship
about to go out again and stand off. But the
cargo shifted, so the ship was run ashore not
far from the South Pier. The crew were all

54 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

taken off by the life-boat. Henry's wife was
present and helped to launch the life-boat, and
seeing her husband in the boat as it made for
the shore, she ran into the water and stood there
up to her waist ready to receive him. The ex-
posure and cold brought on an illness which de-
veloped into consumption, from which she died.

CHAPTER VI

BACK TO THE SEA.

Ye gentlemen of England,

Who live at home at ease,
Ah, little do you think upon
The dangers of the seas.

— Martin Parker.

THE circumstances of the young married
couple were such as to preclude all idea
of a honeymoon. From the first their attention
had to be given to the cares and responsibilities
of housekeeping, without any interval of rest.

Henry shipped before the mast, and in 1847
was in a vessel called the " Express," Captain
Booth, and went with her to Rotterdam. While
lying there six foreign seamen were in a boat
working at their ship which lay not far from the
" Express." The ship's anchor was hanging at
the cathead, ready to be dropped or brought in-
board as might be required. Just as the boat
containing the six men came underneath the

56 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

anchor, the rope that held it broke, and it fell
on the stern of the boat, smashing it like an
eggshell and throwing the men in all directions.

Harry, who saw the accident, gave a shout to
the mate of his ship, then leapt over the side
into the boat which was lying there, and reached
the struggling men in time to save them all — a
feat which only those who have had a sea train-
ing can fully appreciate.

At the end of this voyage he determined to
have a spell ashore, so from 1847 to 1852 he
spent most of his time working as a rigger, or
on the Quay and the river, getting anything to
do he could.

A complete list of the lives saved by Mr.
Watts is given at the end of the book, and it is
not necessary therefore to give in detail any but
those cases which have in them something out of
the common. Here are three such cases, and
these, as it happens, come in chronological order
after the rescue of the six men at Rotterdam.

One Sunday afternoon in 1852 Henry was
walking along the South Pier, when he saw a
crowd of men gathered at one spot. Hurrying
there he found to his dismay that a boy named

BACK TO THE SEA 57

Paul was in the water on the far side of the
pier. No one was doing anything to save
the lad, and as soon as Harry came up, without
a moment's hesitation he dived into the sea and
swam to the boy. The sea was very strong at
the time, and when Henry reached the shore
with his burden, both he and the boy were in
the last stage of exhaustion.

The next day he called at the boy's home, a
house opposite Flag Lane, to inquire after him.
A big, robust woman came to the door, and
when he told her that he had rescued the
lad, and had called to see how he was after his
narrow escape, she looked him up and down
and said, "Oh, wey, that's nowt, canny man;
he's bin owerboard mony a time !" and promptly
shut the door in his face.

Later in the same year Harry was working
on board the ship " John Muller," which was
lying abreast of Smurthwaite's Wharf Float-
ing lazily down the river and near to the ship
was a boat containing an old couple — Mattie
and Jeanie Grey, who gained a living by bring-
ing sandstone down from Hylton in their boat.
Harry was at work in the after part of the ship

58 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

when he heard a cry of " Man overboard !" a
boy named Maughan having fallen into the
river. As soon as Harry heard the cry and
saw the boy he jumped on to the taffrail and
into the water. As he struck the water he
made a considerable splash, for he had jumped
a distance of twenty feet or more, and as he had
gone in near to Mattie and Jeanie's boat they
got rather wet. When he came to the surface
with the boy he swam to the boat, and catching
hold of the gunwale with one hand he said,
" For goodness sake tak' haad o' the boy, aw's
nearly duen !"

Now, Jeanie was a "tartar," and picking up
a shovel she held it aloft exclaiming, " Ye, Harry
Watts ! For two pins aw'd split thee skull wi'
this shool ! Thoo's fair drooned beyth me an'
oor Mattie."

However, on this occasion, Jeanie's bark was
worse than her bite, for as soon as she saw that
Harry and the boy really were exhausted,
she helped them into the boat and put them
ashore. It is interesting to note that this same
boy, Maughan, was afterwards the means of
saving a number of lives at Sierra Leone.

YE HARRY WATTS ! FOR TWO PINS AWD SPLIT THEE SKULL
Wl' THIS SHOOI.!"

BACK TO THE SEA 59

So far Henry had saved fourteen lives, and
the fifteenth rescue was in 1854, when, with
much difficulty, he brought a young woman
ashore who had attempted to commit suicide
in the sea at Hendon. As soon as she regain-
ed power of speech she exclaimed, " Oh, let me
be in! let me be in!" "Not I," said Harry,
" I've hed ower much trubbel ti get thee oot."
Nixon Donkin, a river policeman, coming up,
took the young woman in charge and went with
her to the house of the lighthouse keeper, where
she got a change of clothing. Next day she
was charged at the Police Court with attempt-
ing to commit suicide, Henry being forced to
give evidence, but ultimately she was discharged.

And here is an incident which is characteris-
tic of the man. Soon after his first wife's death
he was in the brig " Susannah," Captain Ward,
and had with him a little fancy dog of which he
thought a great deal, as it had belonged to his
wife. It was in October, and the ship was com-
ing through Yarmouth Roads with foretopmast
studdingsails set, when the little dog fell over-
board. The skipper gave the order to get the
studdingsails down, heave the ship to and lower

60 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

a boat, "and let's see," said he, "if we cannot
save Harry's dog."

Some of the men began to grumble at all
this work for the sake of a dog, and as they
went slowly about the work Harry heard them
grumbling. " Ay, dinna fash yersels, hinnies,"
said he, "aw'll save ye ony mair trubbel," and
without more ado he sprang into the sea after
his dog !

The men, astonished, now worked briskly
enough, got the ship round and a boat lowered,
and Henry, who had succeeded in reaching the
dog, was brought on board much exhausted but
with his pet safe in his arms.

One of the men who had grumbled about
lowering the boat, afterwards wrote the follow-
ing letter to Henry, who preserved it in his
Journal : —

Sunderland,

October 15th, 1875.

About nineteen years ago, as I was coming
through Yarmouth Roads in the brig " Susannah,"
Captain Ward, we had a little dog belonging to
Harry Watts. Ship going at about four knots at
the time it fell overboard. Watts made no hesita-
tion but jumped overboard for the dog, over the

BACK TO THE SEA 61

stem. They rounded the ship to by the captain's
orders to get Watts on board of the ship again.
When he got to the ship he was very much ex-
hausted, but he had saved the dog.

George Lamb.

The saving of the boy at Wapping Dock and
the long illness Henry suffered, as a consequence
of swallowing the poisonous water, belong, in
point of time, to this period, but these have
been related in the opening chapter. Before
he finally left the sea and went to work for the
River Wear Commissioners, he had saved two
other lives in addition to those already recorded,
one, a young girl at Cardiff, and the other a coal
trimmer named Richard Smith, who fell into the
dock at Sunderland.

During his sea voyaging Harry three times
suffered shipwreck. The first time was in
the "John Murray," the particulars of which
are given in a previous chapter; and the second
time was in the " Elizabeth Jane," a ship be-
longing to a Mr. Thompson, draper, of Sun-
derland, Captain Ferguson Golden. This ship
ran ashore on Yarmouth Sands and remained
there all night. There was a very heavy sea

62 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

running and the ship was in great danger of
going to pieces, but was got off the following
day.

On the third occasion the wreck was com-
plete. He was in the ship " Balmoral Castle,"
of Sunderland, Captain George Wardle, and
the ship drove ashore in a heavy gale at Lowes-
toft, there being some twenty or thirty ships all
ashore there at the same time. The crew were
all saved by the life-boat and sent home by the
Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners' Society.

For some time it was impossible to fix the
date when Henry left the sea and went into the
service of the River Wear Commissioners, but
at length, when examining some old papers
which Henry had preserved, one was found
which satisfactorily settled the question. It is a
certificate of discharge from the brig " Martha,"
of Sunderland, and shows that Harry Watts
served on board her from August 19th, to
November 19th, 1861, and it is signed by
Thomas Cook, Master. This was his last
voyage as a mariner.

He was therefore in his thirty-sixth year when
he left the sea and began his career as a diver,

BACK TO THE SEA 63

a career which provided adventures even more
exciting than his sea life had done, and gave
him, too, more opportunities of serving his fel-
low men.

Up to this time, then, Mr. Watts had saved
seventeen lives, and the absence, from these
pages, of any word of public recognition of
such invaluable services is not due to an over-
sight on the part of the biographer. The
oversight was on the part of those among
whom he lived and worked, and who were
either too slow to recognise such bravery and
self-sacrifice, or too indifferent to consider it
worthy of notice. But whatever the cause
the fact remains that (with the exception of
a small certificate), there was not the least
recognition of his services till he had saved
no fewer than twenty-five lives, and then the re-
cognition came from a local swimming club !
This was in 1868, when he was in his forty-
second year, and he had been risking his own
life to save others since he was fourteen. Such
neglect, such indifference to heroic services in
the cause of humanity, is probably without a
parallel.

64 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

To a man actuated by any other than the
highest motive, this lack of appreciation would
surely have acted as a deterrent in this humane
work, but greatly to Mr. Watts's credit he con-
tinued that work, and again and again, and yet
again, risked his own life to save others. And
the risk was by no means imaginary or remote,
as anyone who doubts that statement may easily
discover. Let him choose some fine day and
under the most favourable circumstances make
the experiment of jumping overboard, without
divesting himself of any of his clothing. Even
if an expert swimmer, he will find it no easy
matter to keep himself afloat, without having to
render assistance to others.

But, suppose he is wearing the thick, heavy
clothing of those who work on the water, and
in addition a pair of heavy sea-boots, and
thus dressed he jumps from a height of twenty
feet into the river to rescue a drowning boy.
And suppose the boy, with the desperation of a
drowning person, grips him round the legs like
an octopus, thus paralyzing all his movements,
what then ? The boy struggles with him as he
drags him down, his chest seems bursting for

BACK TO THE SEA 65

want of air, dreadful noises are singing in his
ears. Down he goes into the muddy depths,
and slowly he rises again. When he reaches
the surface there is barely time for him to gasp
for breath before he is dragged under once more,
still trying, but in vain, to loosen that deadly
grip from his legs Under such circum-
stances one will begin to realize that the risk to
the rescuer is very real and very great.

The above is no imaginary case ; it is
what actually happened to Mr. Watts on one
particular occasion, and what, with slightly
altered details, happened to him often. But
of this more hereafter.

CHAPTER VII

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT.

This was the first time I could say, i?i the true sense of the
words, that I prayed in all my life. . . . Now I looked
back upon my past life with such horror and my sins
appeared so dreadful, that my soul sought nothing of
God but discharge fro?n the load that bore down all my
comfort. — Defoe's "Robinson Crusoe."

AT the time of writing Mr. Watts is in his
jT\. eighty-fifth year, and if he were asked to
name the most important event in that long life,
he would without hesitation say it was his con-
version to Christianity.

This important episode in his career which,
in point of time, should have been dealt with
before, has been kept back in order not to break
the continuity of the story of his life at sea, and
we must now go back a few years and give some
account of it.

Mr. Watts was converted, that is to say he
became a professing, believing, and active Chris-

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 67

tian, on January 2nd, T857. About this date
he has no doubt whatever. Like many other
events in his life, his enlistment as a soldier in
the Army of Christ, was altogether out of the
common.

Now, the Atheist may sneer at the statements
to be made in this chapter, the Agnostic will,
perhaps, shrug his shoulders and smile tolerant-
ly, and the educated Indifferentist curl his lip
and exclaim "Absurd!" But none of these
methods will dispose of the facts in the case :
facts which are indisputable and not to be
sneered at or shrugged out of the way : which
facts it is the duty of the unbiassed biographer
to place on record. Theories are well enough
in their way, but an ounce of fact is worth a
ton of theory, and the main facts in this case
are, at the time of writing, patent to everyone
and past all denial.

At the time of his conversion Henry was in
his thirty-first year, strong, healthy, and in the
prime of his manhood : a man who could not
by any stretch of the imagination be classed as
a neurotic subject ; a man absolutely illiterate
and therefore with a mind quite unbiassed by

68 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

reading. He was, at the time, as indifferent to,
as he was ignorant of, religious teaching : the
whole tendency of his work, companionship,
and general environment had indeed not been
"on the side of the angels," but on the side of
evil; and like the majority of his class he thought
drunkenness no sin.

This man, then, on the night of January ist,
1857, was taken home so helplessly intoxicated
that he had to be carried to bed, and was ex-
pected to die before the morning — from alco-
holic poisoning. Yet before the morning of
January 2nd dawned, a revolution had taken
place in his nature, his whole outlook on life
had changed, the citadel of self and passional
desires had been conquered at a blow ; he had,
in fact, to use a familiar word, been "converted."
And a most important thing to remember is that
this conversion was as complete and permanent
as it was sudden ; its effects, beginning in the
morning of January 2nd, 1857, have lasted for
over fifty years.

The scientific psychologist, who cheerfully
undertakes to expound all things relating to the
human mind, and who can evolve the human

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 69

soul from a Pagan belief in bogies, will tell us
that in such a case as this the cause of the
effects noted will be found in will power, atti-
tude of mind, subjective consciousness, or will
use some other phrase which in reality explains
nothing.

Anyone with a knowledge of physiognomy
will readily admit that Henry Watts is a man of
great strength of will : his big, square chin and
determined jaw, show that plainly enough. But
the will only comes into operation after a choice
has been made ; so, while it becomes an import-
ant factor after the conversion, it has nothing
to do with the conversion itself. As to his at-
titude of mind, that was clearly shown, by the
condition he was in, to be opposed to religion
entirely.

The matter is so important in its bearing on
the whole of Henry Watts' s after life and char-
acter, that no apology is necessary for this rather
lengthy introduction, and we may now proceed
to consider the facts of the case. These have
been obtained partly from Mr. Watts himself,
and partly from the written account of his con-

70 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

version which appears in his Journal, written
by a friend over fifteen years ago.

After the death of his first wife he was em-
ployed in running trips to London, and his little
home was without anyone to take care of it dur-
ing his absence. Returning home after one of
these trips, he found that many of his household
goods had been stolen, and this so exasperated
him that he sold off all that remained. Then
he went to his sister Isabella and asked her to
take him in, which she agreed to do, though it
was a difficult matter to find room for him, as
she had a family of little children. Having
settled this matter, he took the money obtained
from the sale o{ his goods and spent it in drink.
He was brought to his sister's house that night
in a dreadful state of intoxication, was carried
upstairs by four women and laid on his bed,
from which it was feared he would never rise
again.

In the early hours of the morning, however,
the effects of the drink having worn off some-
what, he awoke, and saw what he describes as
a huge black cloud, the sight of which filled
him with dread. The impression created upon

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 71

his mind was that the Day of Judgment had
arrived, and a great terror seized hold of him as
he remembered the life he had lived, without
thought of God or religion. In the midst of
his fear he heard a voice saying, " Choose you
this day whom ye will serve."

Immediately upon this he jumped from the
the bed and shouted to his sister in a loud and
agitated voice, " Bella! Bring me the Bible!"

His sister came running up to him saying,
" Harry, gan ti bed agin, thoo'll freeten aal me
little bairns. Thoo's got th' delirium tremens ;
get thee ti bed agin."

" Nay, lass, this is the best thing that's com
ti me yet," he replied excitedly. " Fetch me
th' Bible !"

Thinking to quieten him she brought the
Bible. Holding it in his hands he knelt and
cried aloud for God to pardon his sins. So he
continued for some time, and at last peace came
to him. He got into bed again and slept till
morning ; and from that hour he was a changed
man. Never again did he taste strong drink ;
and for fifty-three years he has lived the Chris-
tian life, acting up to the highest he knew.

72 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

The sceptic may explain the first part of the
above statement to his own satisfaction, and
may show the cause to have been something
other than that supposed ; but whatever the
cause, the fact — the solid, substantial fact of
fifty-three years of Christian life dating from
that hour remains, and cannot be explained on
any other hypothesis than that involved in
Christianity. Such sudden conversions are not
by any means rare in the history of Christianity,
and the reader will scarcely need to be remind-
ed of the most remarkable of them all, that of
Saul of Tarsus.

At this time there lived at the east end of
Coronation Street, just opposite the Market, a
Mr. Thomas Hanson, who kept a framemaker's
shop. He conducted a mission known as Han-
son's Stafford Street Mission. As soon as
Henry got some respectable clothes he joined
Hanson's Mission, and very soon came his first
trial. Mr. Hanson requested him to go and de-
liver tracts to all those who had been his drunken
companions, and try to bring them into the mis-
sion. This was as great a test of Henry's new-
found strength as anything well could be. It

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 73

was another case of " Mulholland's Contract."*
Mulholland, in danger of his life in a cattle-
boat, had vowed to serve God if ''He got me
to port alive." This being duly accomplished,

u I spoke to God of our Contract, an' He says to my

prayer :
■ I never puts on My ministers no more than they can

bear.
1 So back you go to the cattle-boats an' preach My

Gospel there.'

u I didn't want to do it, for I knew what I should get,
An' I wanted to preach Religion, handsome an' out of

the wet,
But the word of the Lord were lain on me, an I done

what I was set."

And Henry Watts didn't want to do it either,
but, like Mulholland, he kept his contract and
"done what he was set," though under some-
what gentler conditions than the cattle - boat
man, who "rounded up" his subordinates on
Sundays to preach

" . . . whenever the sea is calm,
An' I use no knife or pistol an' I never take no harm,
For the Lord abideth back of me to guide my fightin'
arm."

* Rudyard Kipling's "The Seven Seas."

74 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Henry went about his work of trying to re-
claim his late companions in a different way
from that; but his "fighting arm" was there
right enough, and was duly taken into account
by those to whom he talked.

He took a bundle of tracts, and went
to a number of men standing at the foot of
Silver Street, and gave them an invitation to
the mission in his own way.

" Wey nut?" said he, when they objected.
" We've played tigether as boys, we've warked
tigether as men, an' we've offens enuff bin drunk
tigether, wey nut cum ti th' chapel an' let's pray
tigether?"

Most of them gave a blank negative, but to
two of them he appealed personally. At last
they pointed to his fine new clothes and asked
him how he expected them to go and sit with
him in the things they had on?

" Is that what's trubblin' tha?" asked Harry.
"Wait here a few minutes."

Off he went home in a hurry, changed his
clothes for the worst he had, and returned to
them, saying " Noo then, hinnies, cum on, for
we're aal alike."

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 75

The two men thereupon went with him ; they
became converts, and proved to be good work-
ers in the cause for many years.

Henry remained connected with Hanson's
Mission for about a year, and then joined the
Primitive Methodist Chapel in Flag Lane. For
forty years he remained with that denomination,
but when he went to live in the house at the
South Dock, he joined Herrington Street
Wesleyan Chapel, it being easier to get to. In
1900 he returned to the Primitive Methodists,
attending Mainsforth Terrace Chapel, and has
remained there ever since.

He is of the old-fashioned type of Christian.
He knows nothing and cares nothing about re-
ligious controversy ; his simple faith in the
main doctrines of Christianity is all-sufficient
for him, and, it may be said, is a great and in-
creasing comfort to him in his declining years.
He is an optimist to his finger tips, always
bright and cheerful ; and he is so earnest
and vigorous even now in his eighty-fifth year,
that it is good to be in his company for a while.
One scarcely knows to whom to liken him so
far as his religious life is concerned : he seems

76 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

to be a combination of several people. He has
something of the humour of the late Rev. Peter
Mackenzie, without his versatile fancy and his-
trionic ability ; the originality and quaint speech
of Tarn -o'- Jack's lad, breaking out now and
again in the most whimsical sayings ; and the
liveliness, simple faith, and optimism of Billy
Bray — just the sort of man who would be a
strong pillar in any cause with which he was
associated — always provided the cause had a
tactful leader.

" I think I could be a good woman if I had
five thousand a year," says Becky Sharp, and
possibly there are people who think that
they could manage it on something less than
that ; but in Henry Watts we have a man who
has succeeded in living a consistent Christian
life while occupying the humblest social position.

In the early days after his conversion Henry
became a worker in the temperance cause, and
he tells of the difficulties the advocates of tem-
perance had to face in the work. At the public
meetings the speakers had to put up with a good
deal of hustling, and were lucky if they got off
with nothing more forcible than words. When

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 77

the speaker was a working man known to the
audience, he was met with such cries as, "Ay,
an' what was ye afore ye tuk on wi' this ?" and
personalities were freely indulged in. Strange
to say, the women in many cases objected to
their "men" being teetotallers, and would go
to the meetings on purpose to interrupt them
when speaking.

"Ay," says Henry reflectively, "they were
an ignorant and a queer class awtigether, me as
well as the rest of 'em."

Mr. Watts has many incidents to tell con-
nected with his religious life. Some of these
may appear trivial to those accustomed to take
a merely material view of things, those who
pride themselves upon their " common sense ;"
but the deep earnestness and obvious sincerity
of the man are such as to lift even small inci-
dents out of the plane of the commonplace.
One or two of these incidents are given as
showing the character of Mr. Watts, the prac-
tical view he takes of Christianity, and the
earnestness with which he applies its teachings
to every act of his daily life.

7% LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

One morning, when Henry was in Mowbray
Park, an elderly man, an invalid, was brought
into the Park by his daughter. Henry entered
into conversation with him, and presently asked
him if he ever prayed. " No," was the sad
reply, " I cannot pray."

Seeing a Christian friend near, Henry called
him, and the two knelt then and there and pray-
ed for the invalid. Then Henry asked him if
he could repeat the publican's prayer, " God be
merciful to me a sinner." The man complied,
repeating the prayer again and again, and so
they left him. This strange meeting had the
happiest result, for the invalid became a con-
vert, and when he died some little time after-
wards it was as a believer.

During the above scene there sat near on one
of the park seats, a man who seemed to be much
amused at what he had witnessed. He beckon-
ed Henry and asked him had he heard the
news ?

" Nay," says Henry, " What news ?"

" The Devil is dead," answered the man with
a laugh.

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 79

Now, Henry had of course never heard of
that remarkable book The Cloister and the
Hearth, or he would have recognised this fam-
ous saying of Denys, the soldier ; nevertheless
he was not short of an answer.

" Oh, the Devil's dead, is he?" said he; and
with a meaning look at the man, "what a pity
he's left some of his imps behind him."

At this the man answered with profanity, and
Henry with the mild retort to "Gan an' wesh
thee mooth oot," walked off and left him.

Mr. Watts tells how some years ago, a great
desire came upon him on New Year's Day, to
go down and visit the house in Silver Street
where he had lived after conversion, so that
he might pray with the people he found there.
He went, and found the people enjoying the
good cheer customary at such a time. Having
explained his errand they all knelt down,
and in his own simple but forceful vernacular
he prayed with them. Years afterwards he
met some who had been present at that
gathering, and he was overjoyed when they told
him that they had become Christians as the re-
sult of that little prayer meeting.

80 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

But perhaps the truest test of the sustaining
and controlling power of a practical religion
such as Henry's, is seen when its possessor is
brought suddenly face to face with death. At
such a supreme moment a man's deepest
feelings find expression, for he knows that no
sham or superficial profession will avail him
then.

A recent example of what is meant was
witnessed in connection with that terrible ex-
plosion at the Wellington Pit, Whitehaven, on
May i ith, 1910. Owing to the explosion over
one hundred men found themselves suddenly
shut up in a horrible, fiery tomb, without any
hope of escape. Many weeks afterwards, when
at last search could be made for the bodies, in
one part of the workings where a number of
the unfortunate men had been entombed, a
board or beam was found on which had been
written in chalk, " The Lord is our refuge and

strength, a very present help ," at which

point death seems to have overtaken the writer
and prevented the completion of the sentence.
But enough had been written to bring a ray of
consolation to the sorely-tried and sorrowing re-

AN EPOCH-MAKING EVENT 81

latives ; enough to show that even in such dire
straits religion had sustained the sufferers.

And here is a somewhat similar instance in
the life of Henry Watts, an incident which
shows that his religion was no mere superficial
thing, no mere jargon of stock phrases and
platitudes, but a real living force.

The incident occurred many years ago, soon
after he became a diver for the River Wear
Commissioners. The diving suit as now worn
was not then in general use, the diving-bell
being used for all submarine work. At
the time in question Henry went down in the
diving-bell, and took two masons with him to
do some repairs at the lock gates. Hardly
had they got down when the gate chains
fouled the air-pipes and stopped the supply of
air. This caused the water to rise in the div-
ing-bell, and Henry at once began to knock on
the side of the bell with a hammer, that being
the danger signal. Those above heard the
signal and worked hard to clear the chain
so as to pull the bell up, but with no ap-
parent result, for the water in the bell rose
higher and higher and death stared them

82 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

in the face. Fear took hold of the men, as well
it might, and then Henry, turning to his com-
panions, told them that as far as he could see
they were all three condemned to die. " And
I thank God," says he, "that at that moment
He gave me strength to sing a hymn."

He got through the first verse, singing, I
doubt not, without a quaver in his voice, while the
water, deadly and silent, rose higher and higher,
and death came nearer every moment. He be-
gan the second verse, and while singing it, and
almost at the last possible moment when it would
be of use, there came a gush of air, the chain
had suddenly dropped clear of the pipes and
they were saved.

One of Henry's companions on this occasion
was a man who cared nothing about religion,
but after this thrilling experience he " mended
his ways," and subsequently became an earnest
worker in the good cause. The other man was
a religious man, and as Henry says, " After such
a deliverance we both of us tried to live nearer
to God in thankfulness to Him for His mercy."

CHAPTER VIII

AN INTERLUDE.

Fifteen men on the Dead Man's Chest —
Vo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum I

— Stevenson's "Treasure Island."

IN the first part of the book is an excellent
portrait of Henry Watts, but as the
best of portraits must of necessity fall short
of the reality, a few words of description may
not be amiss, and may help to correct the men-
tal picture which the reader, who has not met
Mr. Watts, will have formed of him after read-
ing thus far.

We have seen Henry Watts in his childhood,
one of a struggling family, finding it difficult —
almost impossible — to make headway against
the tide of circumstances ; we have seen him in
his youth, still fighting hard against the stream,
but now, though buffeted about a good deal,
making a little advance ; and we have seen him

84 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

arrived at manhood and securing a foothold,
though a precarious one, on the shore of a social
life of a better and higher kind than hitherto.
What manner of man was he at this period ?

The hardships and struggles he had gone
through were such as soon kill off the weak-
lings ; he is an example of the law of "the
survival of the fittest." It may have been that
some accidental variation from the general run
of his fellows favoured him in the fight, but at
any rate here he is at the age of thirty, a fine
specimen of manhood.

He stands five feet nine inches in height,
weighs twelve and a-half stones, is straight as
a pole, muscular and strong, and has a grip to
the hand of him like a vice. Reddish hair and
beard, what one may call a fresh-weather com-
plexion, keen blue eyes which look out bold and
fearless from under the overhanging brows; and
to finish off with, a firm mouth, a determined
jaw, and a big square chin. Alter his dress and
place a winged helmet on his head, and you
have a true specimen of the old Vikings — those
bold sea warriors who never knew defeat. There
is no mistaking the fact that he is a son of Nep-

AN INTERLUDE 85

tune, he has about him that alertness, that in-
describable something which proclaims the fact.
When I met him first, now over thirty years
ago, though he was then a considerable distance
past the fiftieth milestone on life's highway, so
well did his vigorous constitution hide his age,
that the above description answers for him as
well as at the age of thirty. And even
now, in his old age, when talking to him,
you may put aside his brave deeds and forget
all about them, and he is still an attractive per-
sonality. His courtesy and self-reliance make
themselves felt, and one is not long in his com-
pany before feeling that here is a good man as
well as a brave one. One forgets the broad
vernacular in which he talks, and which sounds
pleasant enough and natural enough as used by
him ; one forgets that he is unlettered ; these
things and all they imply become as nothing
before the natural courtesy and kindness of the
man, and especially before that hall-mark of the
gentleman, whatever his station in life — con-
sideration for the feelings of others. " Divn't
put that doon, though," he says, after telling me
an incident which seemed to reflect upon some

86 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

of the persons mentioned, " Divn't put that
doon, though, theere's mevvies sum o' theer
people livin', an' aw wadn't like ti hurt 'em ; "
and on another occasion, " Yis, it's true enuff,
but aw wadn't put that in," the objection being
the same as before.

Henry has come to understand in some mea-
sure how much he has lost through lack of edu-
cation, and on rare occasions he will bemoan his
hard lot in that respect. But not for long ; the
hopefulness of his nature will out again, and he
will scout the idea of repining, and even try to
find some sort of argument to show that he
might be worse off if educated.

" Wey, aw divn't knaw," he said on one such
occasion, "aw wint ower ti Hamburg yince, an'
theere wes sivven on us aboard an' nut yen ov
us cud read or write, nut even th' mate ; didn't
knaw A B C fra a gridiron, on'y th' skipper.
Whin ony ships passed us, ef the cap'n was i'
bed we hed to roust him oot ti read the nyams
ov 'em. Yit, man alive, we made the passage
awreet. An' here they are tiday, eddicated in
Colleges an' High Skules, an' aw divn't knaw
what, an', man, theers plenty ov 'em cuddent find

AN INTERLUDE S7

theer way yam fra th' ferryboot lan'in' ef th'
leets wes oot."

When the Laing Warehouse on the Dock
was opened, the River Wear Commissioners
gave a dinner to the workmen, at which Harry
was present. Very seriously he told how a cer-
tain Irish storekeeper persuaded him to take
some "stuff caaled blaymonge," It disappoint-
ed him, for, as he says, "It wes that caad aw
nigh shook aal me teeth oot !" As a set-off to
this the same Irish humorist brought him some
plum-pudding, but as it was "aal on fire!"
Henry promptly refused it, no doubt guessing
the cause of the "fire."

Indeed, Henry, from the first day of his con-
version, has been what is called a fanatical tee-
totaller. Once when busy diving at the end of
the North Pier, stopping the leaks in a stranded
ship so that she might be floated, he had come
up for some purpose and was about to descend
again, his helmet lying beside him ready to put
on. At this particular moment a carpenter, who
was working up above, looked over the side with
a bottle of rum in his hand, from which he had
been drinking. He accidentally let it fall, and

88 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

it smashed itself right in Henry's diving helmet.
Whereupon Henry, having given the man a
short but impressive lecture on his bad habit,
insisted upon having the helmet washed out
before he would allow the contaminated thing
to be put on his head ; and washed out it had
to be.

As already mentioned he has a whimsical
humour of his own, but it is doubtful if he has
that sense of humour which we mean when we
speak of its "saving grace." He is not quick
to see a humorous situation the essence of
which is incongruity ; nor that subtler kind
where more is implied than is said, or where
there is a real relation of ideas discovered which
is not apparent. His is more the broadsword
of natural humour, rather than the rapier which
is begotten of a cultivated intelligence.

As an instance of what is meant, he enjoyed
vastly the telling of a story about the " Stormy
Petrel " (Mr. Joseph Hodgson), another well-
known Sunderland life-saver, in which that
gentleman having insisted upon a trial of div-
ing, and the collar-piece being too small to go
over his head, Henry suggested a slight opera-

AN INTERLUDE 89

tion, and solemnly sent a workman for an axe
to cut off the would-be diver's nose ; yet almost
immediately afterwards he told in a few short
sentences, and without any appreciation of its
dramatic significance, another story which is
well worth giving in detail and "with all the
pomp and date of circumstance."

A big Batavian ship, the " Blucher," was
ashore on the rocks to the north of the river.
The crew refused to come off with the life-boat,
but afterwards some came ashore in their own
boat and some were brought ashore by the
rocket lines. The next day Henry was engaged
with a gang of men in stripping her before she
broke up. She lay in a very dangerous posi-
tion and the sea was very rough. When they
had finished work and had got ashore in their
boat, they missed one of their mates, a man
named Jim Bailey. No one being able to give
an account of him, it was decided to go off to
the ship to search for him, it being supposed
that he had been left behind by accident, or
that perhaps he had injured himself in the hold
of the ship.

9o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

So the boat was launched once more and off
they went to seek for him, for there was con-
siderable danger in remaining aboard the ship
as she might break up at any moment. Arrived
at the ship they searched everywhere for the
missing man, but could find no trace of him.
Presently, above the noise of the wind and sea,
they heard a sound proceeding from the after
part of the ship. They forced their way along
and soon located the sound. It was Jim Bailey's
voice and it came from the cabin. They hurried
down, and there sure enough was Mr. Bailey.
He was sitting at the head of the cabin table
with a bottle of rum before him, which he was
doing his best to empty. The sound they had
heard was his voice shouting to an imaginary
company to keep order.

" Silence, gentlemen, silence ! Order for a
song I" and straightway he struck up : —

11 Whenever I go to Blackwall Dock,
I'm sure to meet old Polly ;
And I would rather — rather — ra — "

"Silence, gentlemen, silence! Order for a
song !" And striking the table with the bottle

SILENCE, GENTLEMEN, SILENCE ! ORDER FOR A SONG.'

AN INTERLUDE 91

to emphasize his ruling, he would begin with the
song once more : —

" Whenever I go to Blackwall Dock,
I'm sure to meet old Polly ;
And I would rather — rather — ra — ra — "

"Silence, gentlemen, silence! Order for a
song !" And so on ad lib. , always broaching
to at the same place. What he would rather
have done he never told, for although he re-
peated the words a score of times he never got
beyond the fatal word "rather.". At this point
his imaginary company appeared to interrupt
him, and he had to call them to order.

Henry and his companions had to drag him
out of the cabin into the boat by main force,
but he did not allow this to interfere with the
"harmony." All the time he struggled in a
good-humoured way against this coercion, but
he never stopped his singing, or his " Silence,
gentlemen, silence ! Order for a song !" follow-
ing this with his lugubrious ditty relative to old
Polly.

CHAPTER IX

AFTER THIRTY YEARS.

Old times were changed, old manners gone ;

— Scott's m Lay of the Last Minstrel."

WE have now arrived at a most interesting
period in the life of Mr. Watts — that
of his life as a diver. It was a life full of peril
and adventure and hairbreadth 'scapes from
death, even more so than had been his sea life ;
and it provided him also with more opportunities
of service to others.

There was some difficulty in deciding as to
the date when Henry entered the service of
the Commissioners, but the old discharge note
from the brig " Martha," already mentioned,
establishes the fact that Henry Watts was serv-
ing on board of her from August 19th to
November 19th, 1861, and as he did not go
to sea again after once starting for the Commis-
sioners, he could not have entered their service

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 93

earlier than December, 1861, and probably did
not do so till the beginning of 1862.

On June 7th, 1857, just six months after his
conversion, he married his second wife, Sarah
Ann Thompson, by whom he had two children,
a son and a daughter, both still living. The
marriage took place at Monkwearmouth Parish
Church, the contracting parties being certified
as living in Dock Street, Monkwearmouth. As
a matter of fact, they lived in Monkey's Yard,
but had taken up temporary residence in Dock
Street for a sufficient length of time to enable
them to be married at Monkwearmouth Parish
Church.

Henry's second wife owned some five or six
of the houses in Monkey's Yard, as well as
some other property, the whole of it coming to
her on the death of her mother. The deeds
connected with the property were sent out to
her brother in Australia, in connection with his
claim to a share in the estate. When on their
way home again the mail boat carrying them
was wrecked, but the deeds were recovered,
though in a sodden condition and, in fact, almost

94 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

a pulp, and were sent on to Sunderland.*
Henry tells how, when he afterwards had to try-
to sign his name in connection with this pro-
perty, he was so long about it that the solicitor,
Mr. Snowball, lost patience and exclaimed :
" Come along, man ; you're going to use up all
the ink in the office. Anyone might think you
were signing a Royal Charter." To which
Henry could find nothing to say but, " Aye,
aye, Mr. Snowbaal ; be canny wiv us ; aw's
deem' me best."

Henry's second wife died in 1884, after
twenty-seven years of happy married life, and
is held in affectionate remembrance by all who
knew her.

Before recounting some of the stirring inci-
dents of Henry's life as a diver, a brief sketch
of the river and port at the time he entered the
Commissioners' service will be interesting, and,
indeed, necessary, as showing the conditions he
worked under, and also for the purpose of com-
paring the town and river then with what it was
when he was a boy.

* The deeds are preserved in the Sunderland Museum.

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 95

The three veterans of the River Wear Com-
missioners, Mr. C. H. Dodds, the general man-
ager, Mr. Daniel Wright, and Mr. Harry Watts,
having been brought together, it seemed an
excellent opportunity to get some facts relating
to the port in the fifties, and much of the follow-
ing information is the result of that interview.

In those early days all the ships that came to
the port were sailing ships, and Mr. Wright,
who was at first a lighthouse keeper, remembers
as many as 150 ships passing into the river on
one tide.

The ships did not come singly ; all of them
were dependent upon the wind for motive
power, and as a consequence they generally
came in fleets when the wind was favourable,
hence the " wood of ships " spoken of in chapter
two. The first difficulty they had to contend
with was to get into the harbour, a difficulty
which can scarcely be exaggerated, as far too
little attention was paid to the entrance of the
river at that time. Then, having got safely
over the bar, the next trouble was to get rid of
the ballast. The crews worked in frantic haste
at getting it out ; every available space was

96 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

crammed with ballast ; the quays were covered
with it ; lighters were loaded with it ; it was
dumped anywhere and everywhere, the main
thing being to get it clear of the ship, so that
she could get up the river to load. Mr. Dodds
states that a considerable quantity of the ballast
was carted away and tipped at Hendon.

The disposal of this ballast is of more import-
ance than appears at first sight, for a large part
of the town is built on these ballast deposits.
In the History of Sunderland, published by
Mr. Taylor Potts in 1892, the writer says : —

u There were different places on the river where
the ballast was discharged. On the North Sands,
ships had to be discharged into carts, which took
the ballast up to the top of the bank. Monkwear-
mouth Church stood up the sloping bank, 150 yards
from the high water mark. Monkwearmouth-shore
Poorhouse, in our remembrance, stood quite in the
fields, but Sir Hedworth Williamson kept leading
up and depositing the ballast till the churchyard
was below the level of the deposits ; and they like-
wise went on laying ballast around the Poorhouse
till at last it lay in a hole, the surrounding levels
being higher than the chimneys of the house, which
was at last pulled down and the whole of the space
levelled up.

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 97

M On the North Quay there were two cranes,
worked by horses, to take the ballast out of the
ships. The Lookout Hill, Cage Hill, and Palmer's
Hill are only ballast deposits. Charles Street,
Barclay Street and others were levelled up with
ballast for house building. Afterwards a subway
was constructed, and an engine and cranes erected
below the Ferry, the engine doing the duty of dis-
charging ballast and also drawing waggons to the
top of the bank, where at first the ballast was tipped
into carts, and afterwards into waggons on a lower
level, and thus the roads and streets from the Look-
out Hill to Roker were formed.

" On the beach, above the Wreath quay, vessels
used to discharge their ballast into carts, which
carried their loads up to the higher ballast hills,
where the Wearmouth Colliery ship their coals.
There was also a quantity led out to Southwick,
and also at Robert Reay's yard at North Hylton,
the two latter principally from keels.

u At Deptford, vessels used to lie on the beach
and discharge their ballast into carts, which was
led up the road, and formed what is called the
Ballast Hills at Ayre's Quay, and also Lookout Hill
at Deptford. . . . From Hardcastle's, Bowes',
and Ettrick's quays, and from Thornhill's, Holmes',
and Wylam's wharves, ballast was led all over the
town, wherever required for paving and other filling-
in purposes, as well as to other places of deposit.

H

98 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

' ' Contractors, when putting in culverts or sewers,
are sometimes astonished to find London dredge
sand, with shells and small dust coals all mixed
after being tipped ; and sometimes flints are crossed
in the same way, having come from the West of
England as ballast.

u The difficulty with the different owners of quays
and wharfingers, after landing the ballast, was to
find a place of deposit, and they often had a long
lead to the spot."

The ballast being got rid of by hook or crook,
the ships went up the river to be loaded, and
when loaded had to wait for a favourable wind
to get out of the river. There was thus very
often a large number of ships in the river ; and
when at last there came a favourable wind, off
they would all go together, so that, as Mr.
Dodds remarked, it was no exaggeration to say
that at such times the sea was one mass of ships
from the Tyne to Hartlepool.

But perhaps the chief cause for so many ships
being in the harbour together was the low water
on the bar ; it was then usually two feet below
zero (zero being the standard gauge mark from
which all depths and heights of the water are
measured), and the improvement in this matter

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 99

may be judged from the fact that it is now
fifteen feet — an enormous difference.

It was no uncommon thing then for ships to
be in the river for weeks at a time waiting for
favourable conditions to get out. Mr. Wright
tells how he waited thus for a month when he
was an apprentice; and Mr. Watts tells of a much
worse case than that, namely, of two loaded ships
in the dock and one in the river which had to
wait for three months before they could get
away, owing to a long-continued spell of bad
weather and the want of water on the bar.

Indeed, a wait of two or three weeks was
thought nothing of in those days, though it
came very hard upon the crew. The crews of
coasting vessels were engaged by the voyage,
and had to provide for themselves while in
harbour, no matter how long they stayed there ;
yet they had to be on board their ships every
morning to do such work as was necessary, and
that for nothing. All men before the mast
lived on shore during the time they were in
harbour, but the shipowners were responsible
for the apprentices, and had to provide them
with the necessary board and lodging. The

ioo LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

men who had signed articles by the month had
the best of the bargain during these long delays,
for not only were their wages going on, but it
was part of their contract that they lived on
board, all found. Thus, speaking locally, the
only men, that is, workmen, who suffered by
these long spells in harbour, were the Sunder-
land seamen, they being engaged mostly in the
coasting trade.

The owner to whom Mr. Wright was appren-
ticed paid nine shillings a week for his board,
and it will be seen by the Indentures of Mr.
Watts, given earlier in the book, that the
amount to be so paid in his case was eight
shillings. There were hundreds of apprentices,
and all these boarded out during the time the
ships were waiting, not at all a bad thing for
some of those who kept boarding-houses, for as
many as twenty apprentices would be lodged at
one house, and the boarding-house keeper would
know how to make a profit out of such a
transaction.

As to the price of food in Sunderland at this
time (1850-60), some things were cheap enough,
and some very dear as compared with the pre-

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 101

sent. Fish, for instance, was cheap, sixpence
being the price generally paid for a large cod ;
meat, too, was not dear, but flour was four
shillings a stone. Mr. Wright remarked that,
at his home, where all the bread was got from
the bakehouse, their baker's bill was never less
than £i a week.

When Henry first began as a diver he came
under a West-country diver, then working for
the River Wear Commissioners, and who, per-
haps, being a little jealous, tried to frighten
Harry from the business by telling him of
the number of would-be divers who had been
drowned, and giving many gruesome details
connected with such cases. He even went so
far once as to play certain tricks on Harry when
under the water ; but he had got hold of the
wrong man to frighten, as he soon discovered,
and in a very little while Harry was able to
work alone.

Henry first used the diving-bell in 1864 in
blasting the rocks away from below Lambton
Drops. All the ships' moorings were laid by
means of the diving-bell at that time ; but his
principal work at first was in the river, and one

102 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

of the big jobs he had, which lasted a long time,
was clearing away the stone at the entrance of
the river. About 1869 or 1870 he began to lift
all the stones inside the old pier, and got away
altogether some 300 or 400 tons of them, thus
making a very great improvement at the en-
trance.

It was while working there one day that he
had a fight with a devil fish (Lophius pise a-
tortus). Even when dead this fish is an ugly
beast to look at, sending a shudder of repug-
nance through one, and one feels that it would
be better to go a long way round rather than to
meet it alive and in its native element. It has
an enormous head and mouth, grows to the
length of five feet, and is common along the
British coast.

While Henry was at work, then, he suddenly
found, on looking round, one of these devil fish
near him with its huge mouth open, and con-
templating an attack, or so Henry thought.
Not having anything but his knife to defend
himself with, he signalled to be drawn up, got
a big boathook and descended again, to find
the ugly visitor still there. Using the boathook

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 103

like a bayonet, Henry attacked the fish, rammed
the head of the boathook into its mouth, and so
held it on the ground till he despatched it with
his knife.

He had not been working long as a diver
before he was the means of saving several lives.
In 1862, while working at the South gates, a
boat containing two boys capsized, and the lads
were in danger of drowning. Henry jumped
into the water, though he had on one of his
heavy diving boots, swam to the boys, and kept
them up till a coble put off, into which they were
all three taken.

The following year a boy and a girl, playing
on some timber moored near the Panns Ferry,
fell into the water, and the strong ebb tide took
them swiftly down the river. There was a steam
crane at the place then, and Henry happened to
be in the engine-house at the time. Hearing
the cries he ran out, jumped into the river,
and, with much difficulty, succeeded in bringing
them both to the shore.

A local newspaper, of the year 1 866, contains
the first reference I can find to Mr. Watts's life-
saving efforts. The report is given here because

104 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

of the fact that it verifies the number of lives he

had thus far saved : —

"Narrow Escape from Drowning. — Yesterday
afternoon, about half-past three o'clock, a lad named
Smith, about 16 years of age, son of an engineer
employed on one of the Commissioners' dredgers,
narrowly escaped drowning. He was on board a
dredger in the new Graving Dock, which was full
of water, when he accidentally fell overboard. Mr.
Harry Watts, in the employ of the Commissioners,
gallantly jumped into the water and rescued him.
The lad was very much exhausted, but restoratives
were promptly used, and he was soon brought
round. This is the twenty-second time that Watts
has so nobly exerted himself in saving persons who
have been in imminent danger of being drowned."

The twenty-third rescue is attested by Mr.
Daniel Wright, Harbour Master, in a letter
dated Sept. 5th, 1866, and refers to a boy who
fell off the Commissioners' Quay into the river ;
and the twenty-fourth occurred in 1867, when
Henry saved a boy who had fallen off the
Custom House Quay into the river. A short
newspaper report of a dozen lines tells of
the twenty-fifth rescue. It happened in 1868,
but the exact date is not given. The report is
as follows : —

AFTER THIRTY YEARS 105

"Twenty-five Lives Saved by One Individual.
— In the employ of the Wear Commissioners is a
man named Henry Watts, who has a perfect pen-
chant for rescuing lives, and has in one way or
another succeeded in saving- twenty-five individuals.
The twenty-fifth case was on Friday night, when,
about seven o'clock, a boy named John Fox, living
in Mill Street, fell out of a boat at the Mark Quay
into the river. Watts was at no great distance,
and immediately he heard a lad was overboard he
jumped into the river, and with some difficulty
grasped the lad and brought him ashore."

And now at last there comes the first men-
tion in all this strange, eventful history of any
recognition for such remarkable services, but
this and the ensuing consequences are of suf-
ficient importance to be dealt with in a separate
section. It is only necessary to say here that
from this time onward it is fairly easy to follow
Mr. Watts's public life and acts ; the man has
come to the front, and though recognition has
been tardy enough, it has come at last, and
henceforth no special act of his passes unnoticed
by the Press.

CHAPTER X

HENRY WATTS AS A DIVER.

A nd Mammon's the master and man is the slave,
Toiling for wealth on the brink of the grave ;
Leaving a world of sunlight and sound,
For night-like gloom and a silence profound ;
And fearful the sights that the diver must see,
Walking alone in the depths of the sea.

— Song, "The Diver."

THERE are so many incidents and adven-
tures connected with Mr. Watts's life as
a diver that it is difficult to know how to
arrange them satisfactorily. The best method
appears to be to give the less important inci-
dents here and to deal with the more important
in a separate chapter.

It was while he was working as a diver,
and was on board one of the Commissioners'
dredgers, that he had the narrow escape from
drowning, owing to the boy whom he was trying
to save gripping his legs, as told in a previous

WATTS AS A DIVER 107

chapter. This happened on August 18th, 1875,
and is reported in the local paper as follows : —
"Gallant Rescue from Drowning. — An instance
of great bravery on the part of a diver named Henry
Watts, in the employ of the River Wear Commis-
sioners, was displayed on the morning- of Wednes-
day last. It appears that about 9.20 a.m., a boy
named Bolton, living at Monkwearmouth, was
playing about the quay near Pemberton's Drops,
when he accidentally fell into the river. Watts,
who was on board one of the Commissioners'
dredgers, which was situated a considerable dis-
tance from the scene of the accident, at once plunged
into the water and swam to the assistance of the
lad. Before he had reached him the boy had sunk
twice, and was about to go down, probably for the
last time, when the gallant diver seized him and
proceeded to bring him to the shore. After having
been once taken down by the lad, whose grip now
became exceedingly tenacious, Watts succeeded
with great difficulty in landing in safety. The
poor lad was at once conveyed to his residence,
and restoratives were applied. Every praise is due
to Watts for the pluck and gallantry he displayed,
and seeing that this is the thirtieth occasion upon
which he has saved lives from drowning, we hope
that some substantial recognition of his services
will be given, either by the Royal Humane Society,
or some other society having for its object humane
principles."

108 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

In 1884, while diving at the wreck of a ship
called the " Adolphus," he had a narrow escape.
The ship was lying on her side, the after part
of her being above water, and steam was up in
an engine on the poop deck. The boiler of this
engine burst, flinging the workmen off the poop
deck and hurting many of them, one so severely
that he died shortly afterwards. Henry was
working not far from the engine when the
explosion took place, yet he escaped without
injury.

When he had been at the work of diving
about two years, he was engaged one day doing
some repairs at No. 2 sluice at the dock, when
he became entangled with a long length of
spunyarn which was being used in the work.
The spunyarn had become fastened in the collar
of his diving-dress and the sluice, so it was use-
less giving the signal to be drawn up, as the
strong spunyarn held him fast, and what to do
he knew not for a while. But something had to
be done, so, exerting all his strength, he gave a
heavy spring backward, and so great was the
force he used that the stud on the collar of his
diving-dress was broken off where the spunyarn

WATTS AS A DIVER 109

was caught, and up he came, breathless and ex-
hausted. On another occasion he was entangled
under the water when working at No. 1 Graving
Dock, and was in a terribly exhausted condition
when liberated.

But a worse case of entanglement than either
of these happened to him at the Fame Islands.
One of Mr. Scott's tugboats had been wrecked
there, and as her patent "sweeps," or paddles,
were valuable, Henry was engaged to go and
recover them if possible. When he got to the
wreck he scarcely knew how to begin his work,
for the growth of seaweed was so thick and
luxuriant that it was with the greatest difficulty
he could move amongst it. But it was not in
his nature to give in without a trial, and as he
waded about he presently found himself en-
tangled in the weed to such an extent that he
could not move, and the more he struggled to
clear himself the more hopeless seemed his
chance of doing so. If the reader has ever
been on Lake Derwentwater, and has seen the
heavy growth of weed extending over some
acres of the Lake bottom just opposite Lodore
Hotel, he will have some idea of the difficulty

no LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

and danger of Harry's position, encumbered as
he was with his diving gear. It was only by
the exercise of great pluck and patience that he
finally managed to cut his way out of the hor-
rible stuff with his knife.

He was once employed diving at the out-
let beside the roundhead, his particular work
being to level the bottom with concrete. Blast-
ing operations were in progress two or three
hundred yards from where he was working, and
by some oversight twenty of the "shots" acci-
dentally exploded simultaneously while Henry
was under water. His sensations were extra-
ordinary, as may well be supposed. He was
blown clear away from the work and turned up-
side down, and his assistants drew him in feet
first. He says that it seemed to him as though
a cart-load of scrap iron had been suddenly
tipped on top of him. One of his fingers
was broken as the result of this accident, and
altogether he considers he had a remarkable
escape from death.

Still another narrow escape from death oc-
curred while he was working at the bottom of
the river at Hetton drops. He was removing

WATTS AS A DIVER in

some stones when he felt some small pieces fall-
ing on to his feet, and there came a noise like
thunder which set up an agitation in the whole
of his body. He was unable to see any cause
for this, but wisely signalled to be drawn up.
Hardly had he gained the deck of the lighter
when the whole of the quay wall came tumbl-
ing down and fell into the water. He thus
escaped by a hairbreadth from being buried
under the huge mass of debris.

While working in the dock one day he felt
something grip his arm, and fearing that his
dress would be punctured, he signalled to be
brought up. His son was in attendance on
him at the time, and as Henry got above
water and the mouthpiece was unscrewed from
his helmet, he said,

" Whativer's gettin' haud on us, Tom? It
seems like Satan's own sel !"

It was a monster crab, not one of the com-
mon kind, but a fellow twenty inches across the
extended claws, and with hundreds of short
spikes as sharp as needles all over him —truly
an ugly customer to make acquaintance with
under water. Henry presented the crab to the

ii2 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Sunderland Museum, where it may be seen in a
case to the left of the entrance.

One of the worst of his tasks as a diver has
been the recovery of dead bodies, a task which he
always willingly undertook without thought of
fee or reward, and he has searched the river for
days rather than tell the sorrowing relatives that
the search was hopeless. He had many grue-
some adventures while at this work, but as no
good purpose could be served by recounting
such cases, they may be passed without further
notice.

But here are a couple of incidents of a dif-
ferent character. The account of the first is
taken from the Sunderland Echo of March 9th,
1880:

"On Saturday evening while the daughter of
the captain of a screw steamer then lying in the
South Dock at No. 3 drops, was proceeding on
shore from the ship, she slipped and fell from the
gangway into the dock. The young lady was
speedily recovered, but it was found that in her
fright she had dropped a small leather bag contain-
ing a considerable sum of money. [The amount
was ^47.] After several vain endeavours to re-
cover the treasure, the services of Mr. Henry Watts
were obtained yesterday morning, and in a very

WATTS AS A DIVER 113

few minutes after he descended into the water he
reappeared with the bag and its contents, and had
the pleasure of returning them to the owner, who
had watched his proceedings from the dock side."

This report omits one or two essential facts.
First, that he was asked to recover the bag on
the Sunday but refused, though he willingly
went down on the Monday ; and second, that
he received nothing but the bare diver's fee for
his services, which was paid to him in the cap-
tain's presence, after the money had been count-
ed over in the office of Mr. Atkinson, the traffic
manager for the R. W. C.

Even that, however, was better treatment than
he received in the next case. The schooner
" Susan," of Whitstable, was sunk at the Ferry
boat landing, and Mr. Watts was engaged to
raise her. Before he commenced the captain
came and, with the plea of being " very hard
up," begged Henry to go down into the state
room and try to get £6 in gold that was in his
bed berth, also a suit of pilot cloth, a watch and
chain, a pair of valuable glasses and a ring.
The obliging Henry went down, and at the risk
of his life broke open the state room door,

ii4 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

searched the place till he found the articles,
brought them up and delivered them at the
Commissioners' offices. The captain called the
next day and got them, but never so much as
thanked Henry for the risk and trouble he had
taken.

On one occasion he was sent for to attend to
the Maryport Dock gates, and while working
under the water a piece blew out of the air pipe,
there being a faulty place in the pipe and the
pressure of air being too strong for it. He was
drawn to the surface just in the nick of time to
save his life.

Among the old letters in the possession of
Mr. Watts is one signed by a Mr. J. Lonsdale,
and dated May 23rd, 1877, in which the writer
thanks Henry most sincerely for having saved
his life a few days previously. The matter is
worth a little more detail than is given in the
letter.

On May 20th, 1877, Henry was working op-
posite Mr. Potts's yard, lifting the steam tug
11 WTansbeck," and among those helping him
was his cousin, John Lonsdale. While the
work was in progress Lonsdale somehow be-

WATTS AS A DIVER 115

came entangled in a chain attached to a heavy
pair of stone clips. These had got round his
legs and he fell overboard with them so fixed, the
length of heavy chain dragging him down to
the bottom and preventing every effort to
rise to the surface. Henry looked round just
in time to see Lonsdale disappear under the
water, and he immediately dived after him.
He released him from the chain that held him,
brought him to the surface and on board — this
being not the least difficult of his many plucky
rescues.

An amusing incident of his diving life is re-
membered by some of the older inhabitants of
Millfield. Near Rutland Street there was for-
merly a burn running through some workmen's
allotment gardens, and once during a heavy rain
the drains there became choked, and Mr. Watts
was sent for to go down and remove the ob-
struction, the flood having become dangerous
as the water had risen to sixteen feet. The ob-
struction was caused by a fearful collection of
dead dogs and cats, tin cans and refuse of vari-
ous kinds. A huge crowd had gathered to see
the novel sight of a diver at work in his full

n6 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

diving dress in a street, and when Harry came
up and saw them, he, as soon as his helmet was
removed, u improved the occasion" by deliver-
ing an address on temperance !

This chapter may appropriately finish with a
couple of incidents showing his bravery and re-
sourcefulness under most trying circumstances.

A steamer which had been on the rocks was
taken into the South Dock and placed under
No. 6 drop, Henry being sent down to ascer-
tain the extent of the damage. While he was
under her she settled down and suddenly
listed over on to the side under which he
was working, thus jamming him into the mud.
Luckily there was plenty of mud, some three
to four feet of it ; but think of being in such
a position with a heavy ship pinning one
down ! He did not lose his head, however,
but made the danger signal to those above,
who tried to pull him up, and he seconded
their efforts by scratching and scrambling his
way through the horrible mud till he got clear
of the ship and so came to the surface, after
a most exhausting trial of his strength and
endurance.

WATTS AS A DIVER 117

And now let the reader reconstruct for him-
self the following scene : — About nine o'clock
at night in the winter of 1893, something was
found to be wrong with the dock gates at the
South outlet, and Henry had to go down
and put it right. He was working under
a depth of about twenty-five feet of water, and
had to be guided mainly, if not entirely, by his
sense of touch, for he was in pitchy darkness.
In some way, probably by the action of the
swell of the water, he lost his signal rope, and
in feeling about for it his left hand got into a
block through which a chain ran and which was
being slowly hauled up by a hydraulic machine.
In a moment his fingers were drawn into the
block, and thus held fast, what was he to do ?
There was no possibility of help, and he had
to decide quickly how to extricate himself.
His free hand was hurriedly swept round in a
vain search for the signal rope, and then — one
shudders to think of it — he lifted himself so
that the whole of his weight and the weight of
his heavy diving things came upon the im-
prisoned hand, and with a great wrench he tore
it away, taking off part of one finger and

n8 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

seriously injuring another. Then he came
up, bleeding fearfully, and was taken to the In-
firmary to be attended to.

He tells how before going down on this occa-
sion he left a message with his attendants that
if his wife# came to ask how long he would be,
they were to say about twenty minutes if all
went well. His wife did go ; she received the
message and went home to prepare supper.
But no sooner had she entered the house than
she felt something was wrong, and she knelt
and prayed again and again " O Lord, save our
Harry!" "An' at that verra time," says Harry,
"Aw was under the watter prayin' ti God for
relief fra my peril."

The result of this accident was blood-poison-
ing, and, as he expressed it, "Aw wes black and
blue fra th' croon o' me heed ti th' sole o' me
fut !" He was eight months ill, and during
that time, such was the estimation in which he
was held, people came from all over the king-
dom to see him, one gentleman from as far as
Toronto, Canada.

He was an out-patient at the Infirmary, and

* Mr. Watts lost his second wife in 1884, and in 1887 married
Mrs. Dorothy Jane Hunter, his present wife.

WATTS AS A DIVER 119

with his usual determination he would walk to
the Infirmary to see the doctor.

One night, before going to the Infirmary, he
fainted. He told this to the doctor, who said,
"Well, now, Harry, you must take a glass of
hot milk, as hot as you can take it, and you
must have a little rum in it too."

"What!" exclaimed Harry, "What de ye
say, doctor, some rum ? Nay, nay, it did me
ower much harm i' me young days, an' aw'll
niver touch't ageyn."

Another doctor was called in for consultation
and agreed that the hot milk with the rum in it
was the proper thing for the patient, but the
patient's will was stronger than the doctors'
arguments, and he steadily refused to touch it.
Finally he took the hot milk without the rum.

"And what cured you after all, Henry?" he
was asked.

"The Lord cured me," was the fervent
answer. " I lifted my hands ti God an' prayed
ti Him, an' I had prayin' people aboot me, an'
He heard me ; an' that's how I got cured,"

And when Science has said all it can say on
such a matter, it will still be short of a cure as
efficacious as a simple faith like that.

CHAPTER XI

RECOGNITION.

Service without reward is punishment. — Old Proverb.

THERE is a hackneyed platitude to the
effect that virtue is its own reward, but
it is safe to say that the average man does not
find such a result sufficient. It might be so in
an ideal world inhabited by ideal people, but in
this work-a-day world, in addition to the ap-
proval of our conscience, we love to have the
approval of our fellows and to know that our
acts are appreciated, and especially is this
the case when we are actuated by altruistic
motives. This is, of course, a form of vanity,
but then vanity is almost a universal failing.
It is not alone the desire to be thought well of,
or to receive praise ; it shows itself in the most
varied forms. No doubt there are those, who,
like

RECOGNITION 121

" Humble Allen, with an awkward shame,
Do good by stealth and blush to find it fame,"

but these are the rare exceptions. The vast
majority find the scriptural injunction, " Let
not your right hand know what your left hand
doeth," a very difficult task.

The more honour then to Henry Watts that
he did this. Rightly considered, it is the main
factor in his humble career, the glory of his
life, that for twenty-seven years, from 1839 to
1866 he continually risked his life to save
others without any reward or recognition of
his services. In that time he had saved
twenty-three lives, nearly one life for every
year.

Here is a copy of the first public acknow-
ledgment of his services received by Mr.
Watts : —

At a meeting of the Royal Humane Society holden
at their office, 4, Trafalgar Square, on Wednesday
the 17th day of October, 1866. Present, Thomas
Eld Baker, Esq., Treasurer, in the chair. It was
resolved unanimously, that the sincere thanks of
this Committee inscribed on parchment are hereby
presented to Henry Watts for his courage and
humanity in having on the 5th of September, 1866,

122 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

jumped into the river Wear, Sunderland, to the re-
lief of William Hall, who had fallen therein and
whose life he saved.

Lambton Young, Secretary.
Thomas Eld Baker, Chairman.

But the honour of really calling public atten-
tion and appreciation to the services of Mr.
Watts belongs to a local society, The Diamond
Swimming Club.

Among other newspaper cuttings preserved
by Mr. Watts, is one without the name of the
paper and undated, reporting the presentation
of prizes by the then Mayor (Aid. Gourley), in
connection with the Swimming Gala of the
Diamond Swimming Club. At the end of the
presentation ceremony the members sat down
to a supper, at which " The Mayor said it
seemed rather strange that no effort had been
made to bring the case of Mr. Henry Watts
for saving the lives of twenty-five individuals
under the notice of the Humane Society, and
he should do all he could to procure Mr.
Watts some tangible recognition of his gallant
services.',

RECOGNITION 123

The full name of the society was the " Dia-
mond Swimming Club and Humane Society,
Sunderland," and it was, as I learn from one of
its certificates, established September, 1867.
Among the objects of the Club were the pro-
motion of swimming among young men, the
holding of Swimming Galas, of which a num-
ber was held in the High Street baths, and
others at the South Outlet and Hendon Docks,
and the giving of rewards, medals and certifi-
cates, to those who rescued persons from drown-
ing. The late Mr. James G. Campbell, Printer,
of Press Lane, Sunderland, was the honorary
secretary, and Mr. John Robe, well known in
local history as a swimmer and life-saver, was
the swimming master. One who remembers
the club and its doings, says that among its
famous swimmers were Mr. William Robinson,
who was not only famous as a swimmer but as
an athlete, and who afterwards became landlord
of the "Argo Frigate" in West Wear Street; Mr.
Joseph Bewick, at that time connected with the
Customs, who afterwards ' discovered ' Mr.
Morton, the champion swimmer ; Mr. Sam
Skeed and Mr. W. Shevill. There was also a

i24 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

man called Johnston, a sort of dare-devil fel-
low, who afterwards went into the American
Navy. Mr. W. J. Branfoot was also a promin-
ent member of the club, and for many years
held the record for Sunderland for certain dis-
tances. The swimming drawers of the club-
members were made of white linen with a black
diamond worked on the hip. The meeting
place of the club was at the High Street Baths.
The following is a copy of a cutting from a
newspaper which is preserved in Mr. Watts's
Journal, but without name or date attached.
It appears to have been cut from the Sunder-
land Times : —

" Presentation to Mr. Henry Watts. — On
Tuesday evening- a very interesting meeting took
place at the Gospel Hall, Russell Street, on which
occasion the bronze medal of the Royal Humane
Society and a gold medal presented by the Diamond
Swimming Club and Humane Society were pre-
sented to Mr. Watts, as a token of appreciation of
his bravery in saving 25 persons from drowning.
The chair was occupied by His Worship the Mayor
(Mr. John Crosby), who called upon Mr. J. Candlish
to make the presentation.

11 Mr. Candlish said he expected his duties that
evening to be light, inasmuch as he had relied on

RECOGNITION 125

his prerogative as senior member, to be relieved of
the heavier portion of his duties by his colleague,
Mr. Gourley, who was, he believed, engaged in an
interesting errand and one which his lady friends
present would appreciate. (Laughter.) He had
great pleasure in presenting Mr. Watts with the
testimonials, one of which was a bronze medal and
the other was of greater intrinsic value. He
trusted Mr. Watts would long be spared to per-
severe in his course of usefulness.

1 'Mr. Watts in accepting the testimonials gave
some interesting details respecting his adventures,
and said that, notwithstanding many discourage-
ments he had experienced, he would continue to do
as he had done, for after all he had only done his
duty.

"Among the votes of thanks, Mr. J. B. Hutchin-
son proposed a vote of thanks to the Mayor for
presiding, and said that the real strength of the
town lay, not so much in the wealth and fashion,
as in the patriotism, honesty, and bravery of its
inhabitants, of whom Mr. Watts might be viewed
as a representative.

" Mr. J. H. Campbell seconded the proposal
which, on being put by Mr. J. G. Campbell, to
whose efforts the acknowledgement of merit is to
be attributed, was carried unanimously.

" His Worship expressed his great pleasure in
being present on that occasion, and said that he

126 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

would have regretted to have missed seeing and
hearing what he had enjoyed that evening. The
gold medal bore the following inscription : —

" 'Diamond Swimming Club and Humane Society.
Presented to Henry Watts for his courage and
humanity in saving the lives of 25 persons from
drowning. 1868.'"
The above report, like one given in an
earlier chapter, has missed an essential point.
The medal from the Royal Humane Society
was obtained mainly through the exertions of
Mr. J. G. Campbell, and after repeated applica-
tions had been made by Captain Heard, R.N.,
and when it was found that the medal after
all was only the bronze medal of the Royal
Humane Society which had been awarded, the
Diamond Swimming Club, thinking that this
was not of sufficient merit for Henry's nume-
rous life-saving services, promoted a public sub-
scription to provide him with a gold medal, and
this with entire success, the two medals being
presented together as stated above.

During the afternoon ot July 21st, 1869, a
carpenter named James Watt, who was working
with Henry, fell from No. 2 cranefloat into the
South Dock Basin. He could not swim, and

RECOGNITION 127

was drowning, when Watts jumped into the
water, swam to him and then swam to a keel
with him. This was the twenty-sixth life he
had saved, and for this the parchment certificate
of the Royal Humane Society was presented to
him. This certificate reads as follows : —

At a meeting of the Committee of the Royal
Humane Society holden at their office 4, Trafalgar
Square, on Tuesday 17th day of August 1869.
Present, William Hawes, Esq., Treasurer, in the
Chair. It was resolved unanimously that the hon-
orary testimonial of this society inscribed on parch-
ment be hereby presented to Henry Watts for his
courage and humanity in having on 21st July 1869,
jumped into the water at South Dock, Sunderland,
to the relief of James Watt, who had fallen over-
board and whose life he saved.

W. Hawes, Chairman.
Lambton Young, Secretary.

This certificate was presented to him in the
Theatre Royal, Sunderland, at an entertain-
ment which was given for the benefit of the
funds of the Diamond Swimming Club. The
Mayor (Mr. W. Thompson), made the present-
ation, and in doing so complimented Mr.
Watts upon his bravery, this being his twenty-

128 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

sixth successful effort at saving life, and pre-
sented him with the honorary certificate on
parchment of the Royal Humane Society.

The usual votes of thanks were proposed by
Mr. J. G. Campbell, the secretary of the club,
and seconded by Mr. John Robe, the swimming
master.

The next presentation to Mr. Watts took
place on November 30th, 1875, when the
teachers and scholars of Brougham Street Sun-
day School gave him a large illustrated Bible,
" As a token of their admiration of his bravery
as displayed on several occasions in rescuing
those in danger of drowning." The Bible
bears a rather long inscription on the fly-leaf
eulogising the recipient, and is signed by Ezra
Miller and George Crofton, Superintendents,
and J. B. Kipling, Secretary of the Sunday
School.

During the same year Mr. Watts was the re-
cipient of a gold medal bearing the following
inscription : —

" Presented to Mr. Henry Watts by Mr. Richard-
son for searching the river Wear and recovering
the body of his grandson. 1875."

RECOGNITION 129

The inscription on the reverse reads : —

" Mr. Henry Watts, diver at the recent Tay
Bridge disaster, has saved the lives of 35 persons
from drowning, besides rendering valuable life-boat
and rocket-line services. 4th of August, 1884."

Another medal was presented to Mr. Watts
during 1875. From the time of his conversion
Mr. Watts had been an ardent advocate of tem-
perance and an enthusiastic worker in that
cause, and a local Temperance Society, the
United (or Naval) Temperance Crusaders, in
appreciation of his life-saving services, and as
a token of their esteem, presented him with a
fine gold medal.

The reader may remember the case of the
lad, Edward Bolton, through whom Henry
almost lost his life, owing to the lad clasping his
rescuer round the legs. This brave rescue by
Henry secured for him the Royal Humane
Society's vellum certificate, and a handsome
gold watch subscribed for by friends in Sunder-
land. The certificate states : —

At a meeting of the Royal Humane Society
held at their office, 4, Trafalgar Square, on the 21st
day of September, 1875, present John March Case,
K

i3o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Esq., in the chair, it was resolved unanimously
that the courage and humanity displayed by Henry
Watts in having, on the 18th of August 1875,
jumped into the river Wear at Wearmouth, to the
relief of Edward Bolton who had fallen therein
and whose life he saved, calls for the admiration of
the Committee and justly entitles him to the honor-
ary testimonial of this Committee inscribed on
vellum, which is hereby awarded, he having re-
ceived the bronze medal in 1868.

J. M. Case, Chairman.

Argyll, President.

Lambton Young, Secretary.

This presentation took place on December
14th, 1875, under the auspices of the Sunder-
land Amateur Athletes, at " A private entertain-
ment by members of the Club," which proceed-
ing and the fact that Aid. Kayll, who made the
presentation, occupied a large part of the time
with an address on " Athletics, Ancient and
Modern," called forth some caustic remarks
from the Editor of the Sunderland Daily Echo,
as will be seen presently. The Mayor, (Coun-
cillor John Nicholson), presided, and there was
a long array of prominent local ladies and gentle-
men present. At the close of his remarks on
athletics, Aid. Kayll said that the testimonials

RECOGNITION 131

about to be presented were to be received by
an honest, hard-working man, who was a servant,
and one of the best they had, of the River
Wear Commissioners, for his gallantry in hav-
ing saved the lives of twelve boys, two women,
and fourteen men,* besides rendering other ser-
vices. On behalf of the Royal Humane Society,
he had great pleasure in presenting Henry
Watts with the handsomely framed certificate
as a recognition of the courage and humanity
displayed by him in going to the relief of
Edward Bolton, at Sunderland. He likewise
had great pleasure in presenting him with a
gold watch and chain, which had been sub-
scribed for by friends in Sunderland, who were
proud of their fellow townsman, as an acknow-
ledgment of his courage in saving life from
drowning.

" Mr. Watts, who was received with prolonged
applause, said he had great pleasure in standing up
to return thanks for the grand testimonials with
which he had been presented, but he could scarcely
express the feelings of gratitude he felt towards
his friends. Truly they had been kind to him and

* The speaker was wrong here, as the records show that by
August, 1875, Henry had saved thirty lives. See statement in
the leading article from the Echo of the following day.

132 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

had made him a handsome reward, but at the same
time he assured them that at the time of rescue, he
had never had such a thing- in his thoughts ; he
never thought of money, watches, medals, or cer-
tificates, his only desire was to save life. (Loud
applause.) After alluding to one or two cases
where he had been instrumental in saving life, Mr.
Watts, in hoping that he might be spared to rescue
30 more lives, said they might depend that when-
ever danger was about he would be at his post ever
ready to do his duty.

M At the close of the meeting, Watts was greeted
with three cheers and the meeting thus terminated."

A short leader in the Sunderland Daily Echo
of December 15th, 1875, said : —

" Henry Watts. — Sunderland has taken to
honouring its heroes. While not forgetful of
her Havelock and Candlish, nor wholly unmind-
ful of her Jack Crawfords, it is well that she
should offer a tribute to one of her living
worthies in the person of Henry Watts. The
modest merits of this good citizen may, so far as
the public are concerned, be summed up in the
simple statement that he has saved upwards of 30
lives from drowning. When we consider what are
the awards usually apportioned by mankind to the
destroyers of their species, the presentation of a
gold watch and chain, accompanied by a framed

RECOGNITION 133

parchment from the Royal Humane Society, in the
precincts of a disused School Room, must appear
an inadequate acknowledgment of services so sig-
nal. But we are new at the business and shall
improve as we go forward ; and when we find that
the honour of giving form and reality to this idea
belongs to the young men of the Gymnasium Club
we cannot but view it as a hopeful augury of the
future of this town. As virtue is admired so it
will be practised. Is it, then, too much to hope
that on some future occasion of a similar character,
so calculated to sow in the breasts of our youth the
seeds of generous aims and laudable ambition, the
chief magistrate, fitly supported, may be found dis-
pensing the tokens of public approval in a Hall
worthy of the occasion, and that the opportunity
may be seized of enforcing the noble lesson of un-
selfishness, virtue and philanthropy in a manner
more befitting than as an appendix to an exhibition
of Juvenile Sport and an essay on the antiquity of
the science of gymnastics."

Remembering that Mr. Watts had been risk-
ing his life to save others for over a quarter of
a century without any recognition whatever,
and that he had in that time rescued some 30
persons from drowning, the comments of the
Echo seem none too strong. Obviously the
town was 'new at the business' of honouring

i34 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

its heroes, and certainly did not go about it
in a manner befitting the merits of the case. It
must be remembered, too, that at the time the
above was written, no monument of any kind
had been raised to Jack Crawford, and even his
grave in Sunderland Church Yard lay unmarked.
The writer of the above leading article proved
to be a true prophet when he said "We shall
improve as we go forward." The town did im-
prove in these matters, and in due time the seed
sown by that short but emphatic leader brought
forth fruit.

CHAPTER XII

A SAILORS TRIBUTE.

Honour and shame from no condition rise ;

Act well your part, there all the honour lies. — Pope.

The rank is but the guinea stamp ;

The man's the gowd for a' that. — Burns.

IT is now the pleasant duty of the writer of
these pages to record a presentation to Mr.
Watts, made, on behalf of the seamen of the
town, by the man of all others in Sunderland
whose eloquence enabled him to treat the sub-
ject in a worthy manner.

In 1877 the sailors of the East End of Sun-
derland, remembering that Henry Watts was
one of themselves, though not then working as a
mariner, and proud of his record, determined to
show their appreciation of him by presenting
him with a silver medal. Mr. Samuel Storey
was Mayor at the time, and readily consented
to make the presentation, which he did in one

136 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

of those forceful and able speeches, of which
he is such a master. The report of this meet-
ing at which the presentation was made, and the
main parts of Mr. Storey's speech, are well
worth preserving.

From the Sunderland Daily Echo, Saturday,
May 19th, 1877 : —

"Presentation to Mr. Henry Watts. — Last
night Mr. Watts, one of the River Wear Com-
missioners' divers, well known for his efforts
in saving- life, was presented by the Mayor, Mr.
Samuel Storey, on behalf of the sailors of the East
End of Sunderland, with a silver medal, as a token
of their appreciation of his many kind services to
them. The presentation took place in the Arcade
Long Room, High Street East, where there was a
large attendance of seamen and others. Mr. Watts
appeared before the audience with several medals
on his breast, which he had received on different
occasions for saving life.

" In making the presentation the Mayor said he
had had many unpleasant duties to perform while
he had been Mayor. He had also had many pleasant
duties, and many which he thought had conferred
an honour upon him, rather than upon those who
had kindly asked him to do anything at those meet-
ings, and he must say that the object for which they
were assembled that night was one which enabled

A SAILORS' TRIBUTE 137

him to say that he estimated, not that he was doing
Henry Watts an honour, but that they had con-
ferred an honour upon him, as being the person
chosen to present that medal to him. Virtue was
of no rank ; and good deeds were not performed in
this world only by wealthy and distinguished people.
On the contrary, there was as much virtue, as much
benevolence, as much self-denying willinghood
amongst poor people as there was amongst rich
people, and many a noble deed had been done by a
man wearing a fustian jacket and having perhaps a
pair of horny dirty hands. And it seemed to him
that it was one of the most honourable things a
nation could do, and that those who were in
authority in a nation could do, to honour good
deeds and self-denying actions whenever they saw
them and whoever might be the performer. The
bulk of the rewards and honours conferred in this
country were absorbed by men of wealth and men
of education and position, but there were as heroic
deeds performed, deeds of as great service to the
country and as honourable to the persons who
achieved them as any of those other deeds that
were so amply and fully rewarded. Those who did
these deeds lived in the common walks of life.
Their fame seldom was trumpeted in the news-
papers, and never heard of at Court ; they never
had a place in Parliament. But they had a more
satisfactory reward than these, namely, a know-
ledge that they had performed good deeds and by

i38 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

the performance of these good deeds they gained
the respect and gratitude of those around them.
(Applause.) Now they would see the point of his
remarks, when he mentioned the name of Henry
Watts, who was one of themselves. He, Mr.
Watts, was not a lord and never would be one ;
he was not what the world called a great man, yet
he (the speaker) ventured to say that there were
very few lords, and very few so-called great men,
who could say that thirty-two times in their life
they had performed so eminent and noble a service
as that of saving a human life. (Applause.) Yet
their friend there, who was one of themselves,
had, on thirty-two different occasions performed so
honourable and noble and self-denying an act.
Well, Mr. Watts had not been without reward for
these acts. He looked at him there and saw him
be-medalled about the breast as if he was some
grand old hero of a hundred fights. (Applause.)
He had gained these medals, he ventured to say, in
a much more useful and honourable way than often
soldiers gained their medals in battle. Because
often soldiers were compelled to fight in a bad
cause, and at any time their fighting entailed loss
and sorrow and pain and death for thousands and
tens of thousands of their fellow creatures. Henry
Watts's medals bore witness to no loss of life and
no sorrow or trouble in households, but they wit-
nessed that he had brought comfort and happiness
to many of those who otherwise would have suf-

A SAILORS' TRIBUTE 139

fered. But he had not only distinguished himself
in that way. He thought he was correct in saying
that there never was any shipwreck or disaster but
at which he had been found perfectly willing to
suffer all the trouble and danger necessary in order
to do good on these occasions also. He had had
many medals presented to him. The Government
and the Humane Society had each recognized his
worth ; very many private bodies had recognized
his worth ; and now the sailors in the East End of
Sunderland had thought it would not be an un-
worthy thing, and he was sure it was not, that he
should wear upon his breast a medal obtained out
of the earnings of working men. Therefore these
sailors — he would call them gentlemen, because
what constituted a gentleman was the performance
of gentlemanly acts, and nothing could be more
gentlemanly, nothing more becoming in the real
gentleman than to recognize the honourable charac-
ter and conduct of his fellows — these sailors, he said,
had contributed small sums towards that object,
and had obtained that medal which was inscribed
as follows : —

11 ■ Presented to Mr. Henry Watts by the Sailors
of the East End of Sunderland, in appreciation of
his many kind services to them. April, 1877.'

"The Mayor then pinned the medal to Mr.
Watts's breast, over the others he was wearing,
amidst loud applause, and wished he might live a

140 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

long, honourable, useful and manly life, that he
might have health and strength given to him, and
that that might not be the last time when he felt
that he lived in the estimation of his fellow towns-
men. (Loud applause.)

"Mr. Watts, who was received with cheers,
sincerely thanked those of his friends in Sunderland,
and expressed his deep gratitude to the Seamen of
the East End of the town for the handsome medal
which had been presented to him, and for their
appreciation of his services. But though he had
put his life at stake many times he had done no
more than his duty as an Englishman. In the
course of some feeling observations he said it was
true he had saved 32 persons from drowning, and
in several instances he had received far higher and
more lasting rewards than could have been con-
ferred upon him by the presentation of medals. As
instances he mentioned the name of a boy Maughan
whose life he had saved, and who had afterwards
himself saved many lives at Sierra Leone. Another
young man he had saved was Robert Wilson, who,
he was glad to say, was now a member of a
Christian Church, and he (the speaker) was pleased
to see him at the Jubilee of the Primitive Methodist
Sunday School, leading the children in singing and
directing some hundreds of little ones in the way
they should go. He trusted he would still be
useful in the future.

A SAILORS' TRIBUTE 141

" On the motion of Mr. Brown, seconded by Mr.
J. N. Charlton, a vote of thanks to the Mayor was
carried with enthusiasm ; three hearty cheers being
also given for Mr. Watts."
Earlier in the same year a special meeting
of the Local Marine Board was held in their
office, Villiers Street, for the purpose of pre-
senting Henry Watts with a bronze medal
which had been transmitted by the Board of
Trade in recognition of the services he had
rendered in saving life on various occasions.
The meeting was not in any sense a public one.
The medal was presented by the Chairman,
Mr. C. Hodgson, with a few words of con-
gratulation and appreciation after he had read
the following letter : —

Board of Trade,

Whitehall Gardens,

6th January, 1877.
Sir,

I am directed by the Board of Trade to transmit
to you the accompanying bronze medal which has
been awarded by them to Mr. Henry Watts, in
recognition of his services in saving lives from
drowning on various occasions, and I have to
request you to move the Local Marine Board to be
so good as to take steps for presenting it to Mr.
Watts in a suitable manner.

142 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

I have to request that Mr. Watts's receipt be
sent to this department.
I am,

Your obedient servant,

J. B. SWANSTON.

It will be seen that once his work was
brought to public notice there was no lack of
recognition ; indeed honours crowded upon him
from all quarters, and, considering all the cir-
cumstances of the case, it would not have been
surprising had so much public flattery turned
his head a little. But through all this laudation
and be-medaling he remained — Henry Watts,
the same simple, cheerful, plucky workman.
The sentence he used in his reply to the pre-
sentation from the sailors of the East End gives
the key note to his character during this period :
"He had received far higher and more lasting
rewards than could have been conferred upon
him by the presentation of medals." He appre-
ciated fully the honour his townsmen did him,
but to see one of those he had saved teaching
little children in the Sunday School was a
greater joy to him than the bestowal of some
decoration for himself.

CHAPTER XIII

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY.

There are some meannesses which are too mean for ?nen.

— Thackeray.

ON Monday, August 5th, 1878, Mr. Watts
lent his medals to the committee of the
James Williams Street Christian Lay Church
for exhibition at a bazaar they were holding, it
being felt that the array of famous medals would
be a great attraction. Two days later it was
discovered that some one had entered the pre-
mises during the night and stolen the whole of
the medals along with some other things. When
the theft became known Henry himself was
much cast down, and there was a feeling of deep
indignation throughout the town at this, as the
papers described it, heartless robbery, which in-
deed it was. A local paper gave the following
list of the medals stolen : — Gold medal from the
United Temperance Crusaders, with a large
silver fastener attached ; Gold medal from the

i44 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Diamond Swimming Club, Sunderland ; Gold
medal presented to Mr. Watts by Mr. Richard-
son for searching the River Wear and recover-
ing the body of his grandson ; silver medal pre-
sented by the sailors of the East End of Sun-
derland ; and a bronze medal presented by the
Royal Humane Society.

The Sunderland Weekly Times of August
9th, 1878, spoke of the theft in the following
terms : —

" We have seldom heard of a more heartless and
unfeeling robbery than that which has deprived Mr.
Henry Watts, or — as he would better like himself
to be called — Harry Watts the life-saver, of his
well-earned medals. The medals, five in number,
were on view at the Christian Lay Church Bazaar
in James Williams Street, the Church of which Mr.
Watts is an active and respected member, and on
Tuesday morning it was found that someone had
broken into the premises during the night, and
decamped with them all. Every effort has since
been made to obtain a clue to the perpetrator of
the heartless theft, but in vain, and much sympathy
is expressed towards Mr. Watts for his loss,
especially in the east-end of the town, where his
genial nature and unobtrusive simplicity of charac-
ter have made him a universal favourite. Depend

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 145

upon it, the thief would get little quarter there, for
the east-enders know whom to be proud of, and
they recount Harry's deeds with as much pride and
as much pleasure as if they had been the chief actors
themselves. And it is no slight task that Harry
Watts has accomplished. He has saved thirty-
three lives, and has never yet shrunk from the task
when a fellow-creature's life was in danger. That
is true heroism, for it is a terrible thing to get into
the grasp of a drowning man, and it requires a clear
head and strong arm to effect a rescue. Witness
the sad bathing fatality at Hendon beach on Wed-
nesday, when a lad was drowned close to the shore,
and two swimmers who went out to assist him
barely escaped with their own lives. It is a credit
to the town that it has such a man in its midst as
Harry Watts, and we hope, if his medals be not
recovered, that he will receive some substantial
token of sympathy at the hands of his fellow-
townsmen that may take their place in the eyes of
the possessor, and that may be handed down as
heirlooms to his children, to be looked upon in
after years with family interest and pride."

In a leading article on Thursday, September

5th, 1878, the Sunderland Daily Echo said : —

" The attention of the town has not a day too

early been drawn to the sad misfortune which has

befallen the humble hero whom Sunderland has the

distinguished honour of numbering among her

46 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

citizens Whilst his native modesty

prevented him from blazoning his deeds forth to the
world, he nevertheless dearly valued the proofs with
which he had been furnished that his noble services
in the cause of humanity were not unesteemed by
his countrymen, but more particularly by his fellow-
townsmen We consider it is the

plain duty of the town at the very least to replace
by substitutes the trophies so stolen. The villain's
conduct casts a slur upon the people of Sunderland
which they can best remove by quickly showing in
the manner which may be deemed the most striking
the deep indignation which they unquestionably feel
over the humiliating incident. The town, many
think, would only be acting becomingly if it were
to seize the opportunity to mark more pronouncedly
the esteem in which it holds such deeds as those
with whose glowing records Watts has so richly
embellished his humble name and station. The
trophies may be replaced, but when this has been
done, the town will scarcely have discharged the
debt of gratitude under which it lies to Mr. Watts.
When, as a nation, we pay the utmost homage to
men who have distinguished themselves in dealing
out death and destruction among our enemies,
surely we may spare a modicum of generous
recognition for the man in our midst who has won
for himself a far more honourable fame by saving
from death, often at the imminent peril of his own
life, no fewer than thirty-three of our own brothers

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 147

and sisters. In paying this debt of respect and
gratitude, a profitable lesson, too, may be conveyed
to the younger generation, and this might prove
not the least favourable feature of the movement.
We would suggest that, beyond replacing the
medals stolen, the committee which has been given
this matter in charge should aim to establish a
Watts Swimming Trophy, to be annually contested
for by the youths residing on the banks of the Wear.
If this could be accomplished by means of a penny
subscription, which would give the people generally
a share in the movement, it would prove all the more
valuable and striking. Such a trophy would create
a healthy emulation amongst all classes, and the
public would have the satisfaction of knowing that
while they had been recognising genuine daring
and nobleness, they had also been stimulating the
rising manhood of the port to the acquirement of a
highly valuable and indispensable art, the necessity
for a knowledge of which could not be brought
home more impressively than by the terrible loss of
life off Woolwich."*

The town lost no time in replacing the medals.
A committee was formed and subscriptions came
in quickly. But before this committee could

* This reference is to the sinking- of the passenger steamer,
"Princess Alice," which, while crowded with passengers, was
run into and sunk by the collier steamer " Bywell Castle," in
the River Thames, on Tuesday, September 3rd, 1878, and as the
result of which some 600 persons lost their lives.

148 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

act, the United Temperance Crusaders, on their
own initiative, obtained a new gold medal to re-
place the one they had presented to Mr. Watts
in 1875; and on September 4th, 1878, just a
month after the theft, this medal was presented
to him at a crowded public meeting, held in
Coulson's Mission Hall, Calver Street.

11 Mr. R. H. Watson, in making the presentation,
said that when three years before the Temperance
Crusaders presented Mr. Watts with a gold medal,
they considered that they were only conferring
upon him an honour to which he was richly en-
titled. When Mr. Watts came to his sad loss,
which was regarded as a local calamity, they, after a
little talk in private, determined to present him with
a second gold medal. They did not make their
purpose public, though if he had taken all the sub-
scriptions offered him after the medal had been
exhibited, he would now have had funds in hand
sufficient to have presented Mr. Watts with more
than twenty medals. The presence of so many
strangers at the meeting was in itself a proof of the
esteem in which Harry Watts was held generally.
He had great pleasure in asking Mr. Watts to
receive the medal as a renewed token of their
kindly feelings towards him, and, as the inscription
on it stated, as a mark of their high sense of his
manly courage in rescuing thirty-three persons
from drowning.

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 149

" Mr. Watson then pinned the gold medal on Mr.
Watts's breast amid loud applause, and he added
that if it should be Mr. Watts's sad misfortune to
lose this medal, the Temperance Crusaders would
feel happy and proud to present him with a third
medal.

11 Mr. Watts in thanking the donors for their
great kindness remarked that if it should be his
good fortune to receive either the original medals
or substitutes, he gave them his word that if any
person wanted to see the medals they would have
to see the owner also ; and if any man attempted to
take them from his breast, he would fight for them
as hard as his fellow townsman, Jack Crawford,
fought for the flag of old England at Camperdown.
When he heard of his loss he was very much cast
down, and he had felt the effect of it up to the
present time. Therefore he was all the more
thankful for what the Crusaders had done for him.
(Applause.)

"Mr. Watson then presented another trophy to
Mr. Watts, a silver star medal, given by Mr.
Rennison, silversmith, of Bridge Street, and in
doing so said that Mr. Watts was entitled to all the
honours which Sunderland could confer upon him,
and he should not be surprised if within a couple
of weeks Mr. Watts bore on his breast far more
medals than the rascally thief stole. (Applause.)

"In again thanking them Mr. Watts said that
he cast no blame for his loss on the brethren and

i5o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

sisters of the Lay Church, whose grief caused him
far more pain than the actual loss of the medals."

Other speakers followed, eulogising Mr.
Watts, but sufficient has been given to show
the high esteem in which the hero was held by
the townspeople generally.

Some time after the theft of the medals a
policeman met a man in the lower part of the
town carrying a sailor's bag over his shoulder.
It is the nature of a policeman to be suspicious,
and this policeman being no exception to that
rule, stopped the man and asked him what he
had in the bag. He said he was a sailor just
returned from sea, and the bag contained his
dirty clothes. The unbelieving policeman
thought he would like to look at the things,
and insisted upon doing so. The result justified
his suspicions, for the bag was full of mis-
cellaneous articles which the fellow had stolen
from a chemist's shop into which he had broken.

The man was marched off to the police
station and surprising revelations followed. He
proved to be a John Bailey, of 6 Grey Street,
Southwick, an engine fitter by trade, who had
been regularly working at his trade during the

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 151

day time, but had for a long time carried on a
systematic course of burglary at nights. When
his house was visited it was found to contain
articles stolen from various parts of Sunderland
as well as from Southwick and Seaham Har-
bour. This was the man, it was discovered,
who had broken into the Lay Church in James
Williams Street and stolen the medals belonging
to Mr. Watts. The detective, on questioning
the daughter of the prisoner, a child eight years
old, respecting the medals, was told that her
father had given her some medals to play with,
but she had thrown them into the fire as she
thought them of no use. A vigorous search
was made but only one of the medals was found,
the one presented to Henry by the sailors of
Sunderland, and it was found greatly damaged
in the ashpit of the house, having evidently
been through the fire.

A search of the man's house brought to light
a most amazing collection of stolen articles ; a
model of a ship, two model steam engines, child-
ren's frocks and other things stolen from the
Christian Lay Church at the same time as the
medals, cutlery, hardware, compasses, a fancy

i52 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

time-piece, stockings, tablecloths, hairseating
and covering cut from one of the Seaham Har-
bour railway carriages, and many other things ;
indeed the man seems to have been a klepto-
maniac, and to have stolen for the mere pleasure
of stealing. But though the police found a large
collection of stolen property of every kind, of
the medals there was no trace beyond the dam-
aged one already mentioned.

But Henry was not to be very long without
trophies. There were many difficulties in the
way of procuring duplicates of some of them,
but all these difficulties melted away before the
enthusiasm of those who had determined that
the medals should be replaced ; and on Decem-
ber 3rd, 1878, a meeting was called for the
purpose of presenting Henry with the duplicate
medals. The meeting was very appropriately
held in the Christian Lay Church, James
Williams Street, from which place the originals
had been stolen, and the Mayor (Mr. Samuel
S. Robson), presided over a crowded attendance,
a large number of seamen being included in the
audience. The Mayor's remarks are well worthy
of reproduction, as showing where Mr. Watts

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 153

stood thirty-two years ago in the estimation of
his fellow townsmen. The following is taken
from the report of the meeting published in
the Sunderland Daily Echo, December 4th,
1878:—

"The chairman referred to the meeting as the
most interesting- one he had been called upon to
attend since his election to the Mayoralty. The
bravery possessed by Mr. Watts was of the highest
order of bravery. He did not ' seek the bubble
reputation at the cannon's mouth,' he was truly
brave, and had rescued many a man from a watery
grave. He had done brave deeds when there had
been no applauding multitudes to see him, the only
reward he got being a good conscience. Mr. Watts
was a possessor of that moral courage so much to
be desired by us all. His conduct in the past had
fortunately not been entirely unrewarded, for he had
had medals from many societies, among others
from the Royal Humane Society, who never pre-
sented medals unless they were well deserved.
The gifts which had at various times been bestowed
upon Mr. Watts were : — A silver medal from the
sailors of Sunderland ; a large gold medal from the
Diamond Swimming Club ; a small gold medal
from Mr. Richardson, of Monkwearmouth ; bronze
medal from the Royal Humane Society; gold medal
from the United Temperance Crusaders ; a bronze

154 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

medal from the Board of Trade — a beautiful piece
by Wyon — a second gold medal from the United
Temperance Crusaders ; and a silver star medal
from Mr. Rennison of Bridge Street. The first
five medals mentioned were the ones stolen, and,
as most of the audience knew, duplicates of them
were to be returned to Mr. Watts that evening.
When he (the speaker) first heard of the petty theft
which had been committed, it struck him as the
meanest robbery he had heard of. It was a most
shabby theft, for when a man got a great monetary
advantage by theft he might consider it some in-
ducement, but the chief value of the medals being
in the honour attached to them, he could not con-
ceive why the robbery had been committed. Per-
haps, however, after all, the stealing of the medals
had done Mr. Watts a good turn, for they now had
the opportunity of showing him what a host of
friends he had in the town, and the occurrence had
been the means of, if possible, bringing his name
into greater repute than ever. (Applause.) Mr.
Watts's name was certainly now a household word
throughout Sunderland, and the pleasing fact of
this church being so well filled with sympathising
friends must be deeply gratifying to him.

"The Mayor then, amidst a scene of immense
enthusiasm, pinned the medals upon Mr. Watts's
breast, and at the same time presented him with the
following illuminated and framed address : —

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 155

TO MR. HENRY WATTS.

Numerous friends in your native town having
shown their approval of your many successful
efforts to save your fellow men from drowning,
they desire once more to show the high estimation
in which you are held by replacing the gold and
other medals stolen from the James Williams Street
Chapel Bazaar on the 6th of August, 1878.

Further, they hope your life will be spared, and
that you will long wear the new medals this day
presented by the Mayor of the Borough.

Sam. S. Robson, Mayor.
Sunderland, 3rd Dec, 1878.

"Mr. Watts in replying expressed his deep
gratitude for their kindness in restoring his lost
medals, and said he thought it was his duty to tell
the audience that he had had an interview with the
man who had stolen them. When he asked the
prisoner whether he had taken all the five medals,
he said 'Yes, I took them all. The first night I
got them I put the bronze medals into the fire, and
then I took the gold medal and broke it into pieces,
and put the other three into a drawer in my house.'
Then the prisoner Bailey said to me that he wished
he was drowned, and I said, ' Mister, if ye were
droonin' aw'd pull ye oot bi th' neck !' (Loud
applause.) After renewed thanks to the meeting
Mr. Watts resumed his seat amid another outburst
of cheering."

156 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Mr. James G. Campbell, printer, of Press
Lane, a staunch friend of Mr. Watts and the
first to call public attention to his remarkable
record, was at the meeting, and on being called
upon by the Mayor proposed the following
resolution : —

"That this public meeting assembled respect-
fully requests the Mayor to forward a memorial
to Her Majesty, asking that the Albert Medal be
presented to Mr. Henry Watts, in recognition of
his successful efforts in saving so many lives
from drowning."

This resolution was carried with acclama-
tion, and the Mayor undertook to forward the
memorial to the proper quarters.

What happened to that memorial ? Did it
ultimately arrive at the Circumlocution Office
and disturb the calm serenity of some of the
Tite Barnacle Tribe, to be pigeon-holed by them
as another piece of impertinence on the part of
the public ? There is no record of what became
of it after it had left the hands of the Mayor,
but the following letter, dated some eighteen
months after the resolution was passed, shows
that it was sent forward : —

A HEARTLESS ROBBERY 157

13, Claremont Terrace,
Sunderland,

July 19th, 1880.

Dear Sir, — I got the memorial from Mr. Tone
this morning-, and have sent it to Mr. Gourley,
M.P., and a copy to Sir Henry Havelock-Allan,
M.P., and hope that they may succeed in getting
you the Albert medal. I am sure you deserve it.
With kind regards,

I am, yours truly,

S. S. Robson.
Mr. Henry Watts.

Four months after receiving the above letter
Mr. Watts received one from Sir Henry
Havelock-Allan, but, as will be seen, no men-
tion is made in it of the Albert medal or of the
memorial.

70, Chester Square, S.W.,

4th Nov., 1880.

Dear Mr. Watts, — I have been away in Darling-
ton and Yorkshire on business for some days, or
would have acknowledged the receipt of your
photograph earlier.

I thank you very much for sending it to me, and
it gives me gratification to have the likeness, and
also, I hope, the friendship of so brave and dis-
tinguished a man, and of one who has shown

158 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

himself so truly a benefactor of his fellow-men.

Believe me,

Yours very truly,

H. M. Havelock- Allan.
Mr. Henry Watts, Sunderland.

The incident of the stolen medals may be
finished by stating that the man Bailey was
sent to prison for twelvemonths for some of his
thefts, and on his release Mr. Watts was
urged to prosecute him for the theft of the
medals, but refused to do so.

CHAPTER XIV

THE TAY BRIDGE DISASTER.

.. . / have bedimrrid
The noontide sun, called forth the ??iutinous winds,
And Hwixt the green sea and the azured vault
Set raging war. — The Tempest. Act 5, Sc. I.

A 11 THEN the duplicate medals were pre-
V V sented to Mr. Watts he was fifty-two
years old. He was then — at a time of life when
most men begin to think of themselves as grow-
ing old — strong and vigorous, and with many
years of useful service before him. Of his ser-
vices on behalf of humanity there is still much
to record ; and he was honoured, too, with other
marks of appreciation, but these will be men-
tioned in due time. For the present, as we have
seen that his noble and self-sacrificing work as
a life-saver has been fully recognised, we may
leave that phase of his career for a while and
take up the story of his work-a-day life once
more.

Mr. Watts was one of the divers employed
in trying to recover the bodies of the victims

160 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

of the Tay Bridge disaster, and in order that
the reader may understand something of the
work that was done there, it will be necessary
to give a short account of that terrible accident.
The Tay Bridge, which crossed the river at
Dundee, took six years to build, and was opened
for traffic on May 31st, 1878. Its total length
was 3,450 yards, with 85 spans, and the cost of
the structure was ,£350,000. Eighty-five piers
supported a number of spans of varying length.
The last span at either end of the bridge was
short, but in the centre, where the navigable
channel of the river ran, there were 13 spans
each 245 feet long, with the piers so high that
at high water there was a clear water way of 85
feet, amply sufficient for the class of vessels ply-
ing from Dundee to places up the Tay. The
bridge was a single road one, that is, it was only
of sufficient width for a single line of rails ; it
was ten feet higher than the present bridge*.

* It is interesting to note that the locomotive engine which fell
with the bridge was recovered from the river, and I am officially
informed that it is still working. The Secretary of the North
British Railway Co., in a letter dated 18th January, 191 1, says : —
"The engine in question is No. 224 and is employed on the Pas-
senger service between Dunfermline and Glasgow and Thornton.
It is a bogie engine with 17m. by 24m. cylinders, 4 coupled wheels
6ft. 6in. diameter, and bogie wheels 3ft. 7m. diameter. The en-
gine was re-boilered in 1887 and has since been in continuous
service."

TAY BRIDGE DISASTER 161

On Sunday, December 28th, 1879, a gale of
unusual violence swept across Dundee, and at its
height, at 7. 10 p.m., the train from Edinburgh,
due at Dundee at 7.15, was crossing the bridge
when the whole of the centre portion of the
structure collapsed and fell into the river, carry-
ing the train and about ninety passengers with
it. Not a single soul of those on board the
train escaped alive. As the river at that part
is about two miles wide, the noise of the falling
bridge and train could not have been heard at
either side even if it had been a still night, in-
stead of a most tempestuous one ; and so for
a short time nothing was done or attempted,
because nothing was known of the dreadful
catastrophe.

But presently, the train not arriving after
having been signalled as on the bridge, the sta-
tion master at Dundee went to the signal box
and discovered that the wires were broken and
it was impossible to get any signals through.
Mr. Roberts, the superintendent of the locomo-
tive department, then went along the bridge at
great risk, for the force of the wind was such as
to almost lift him off his feet at times. Urged

M

162 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

by anxiety, however, he persevered, and crawl-
ed along on his hands and knees to the point
where the high girders began, and there his pro-
gress was arrested. To his horror he discovered
that the whole of the thirteen central girders,
each 245 feet long and 250 tons in weight, were
gone, and nothing remained but the iron pillars
which had supported them.

At the moment the train fell certain people
on shore had seen two intensely brilliant sheets
of flame and showers of sparks at the centre of
the bridge where the high girders ran, evidently
resulting from the friction of the ponderous
mass of iron as it ground against itself and
crashed into the river below from a height of
about 100 feet.

A steamer was sent out to inspect and search,
and she launched her lifeboat and searched for
a considerable time, but not a soul had escaped.

Almost the first thing done by the authorities
after realizing the terrible nature of the calamity
was to secure divers with a view to recovering
the bodies, and the first attempt was made on
the Wednesday following the accident, but was
futile.

TAY BRIDGE DISASTER 163

Mr. C. H. Dodds, the General Manager of
the River Wear Commissioners, was among the
first in Sunderland to hear of the disaster, and
it gave him a great shock. He at once went to
see Sir James Laing, Chairman of the Com-
missioners, and suggested to him that as skilful
divers would be wanted, if Henry Watts could
be induced to help, it would be a very good
thing for the authorities at Dundee. Sir James
at once agreed, and Mr. Dodds hurried down
to see Henry.

"As soon as I mentioned the matter to
him," says Mr. Dodds, "he promptly agreed to
go, immediately offering his services free."

"The authorities at Tay Bridge," says a
newspaper report of the time, " telegraphed
that they would be most happy to accept the
services of Mr. Watts, and he took his de-
parture, carrying diving apparatus with him.
He is also accompanied by his two assistants,
one of whom is his son."

Another report states that " Mr. Henry
Watts, the well-known Sunderland diver, left
that town by the 1 1.0 p.m. train on New Year's
Day [1880], for the scene of the Tay Bridge

1 64 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

disaster. Harry Watts, as he is more familiarly
called, offered his services gratuitously imme-
diately it became known that the disaster had
occurred, provided he could obtain permission
from his employers."

This permission, as we have seen, was
readily granted, and Harry set out with his
assistants.

Asked what was the first thing he did when
he got there, he said that as soon as he arrived
at Dundee he bought himself a splendid knife,
the best he could buy, a most fortunate purchase
as it proved. The water was sometimes running
like a mill race, and was so full of mud and scour
that it was impossible to see anything when a
few feet below the surface, so that the divers
had to do what they did entirely by the sense of
touch. Pushing his way in the liquid darkness
Henry presently stumbled upon the telegraph
wires which had come down with the bridge,
and in a moment he was entangled in them and
began to wonder how he was to get clear. It is
necessary that a person should understand some-
thing of the diver's business to appreciate what
it means to be entangled when under water,

TAY BRIDGE DISASTER 165

even in clear water where there is some little
light. But in this case not only was there com-
plete darkness, but a very strong tide was
running, and all around him were the monster
remnants of the wrecked train and bridge, any
one piece of which might topple over on to
him and crush him to death.

A long and varied experience enabled him
to keep a clear head under these trying cir-
cumstances, and presently bethinking himself of
the new knife he had bought, he whipped it out
and managed to cut through a few of the wires —
sufficient to allow him to get free, though the
little finger of his left hand was broken as a
result of the struggle.

He was away a week altogether, and was
diving for three days. Diving operations were
suspended on Monday, January 5th, 1880; on
the following day all the divers attended the
inquiry to give evidence, and on Wednesday,
January 7th, they left for their homes.

Though somewhat uncertain as to dates
Henry's memory is excellent as regards general
facts, and this is the story of his share in the
work as told by himself : —

1 66 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

"When Mr. Dodds came and asked me to
go, why, of course, I agreed at once, and he
said, ' Now, Harry, you must be sure and take
every care of yourself ; and what men you take
with you make sure that they are careful and
trustworthy.'

" So I took my son Tom and a cousin.
We got there all right, and the first thing I did
was to buy a knife, a real good 'un, the best I
could get, and a good job I did too. Divers
were there from the Royal Navy working with
us, and there were divers from all parts. There
was a heavy swell on, and sometimes the tide
was very strong, and when it came, it came with
a rush. The first day I was down I got
entangled with the Shields diver, but I didn't
know who it was, for it was so dark you couldn't
see an inch in front of you.

" I sent up a few things and then I got into
a third class carriage to look for some of the
bodies, and I went through it from end to end
on my hands and knees, but it was empty. In
doing this a piece of iron on the carriage tore
open the sleeve of my dress, which got half full
of water before I could get up to put it right.

ONE DAY I CAME UPON THE ENGINE OF THE TRAIN.

TAY BRIDGE DISASTER 167

" The second day we tried further down to
see if we could get any of the bodies, but neither
then nor afterwards did we find any. Those
that were recovered were washed ashore or
found with drags. But we kept on going down,
though it was dreadfully heavy work, and dis-
appointing too, owing to the state of the river
and the difficulties of working amongst the huge
heaps of stuff that lay at the bottom of the
river. One day I came upon the engine of the
train, but I dare not go in to search it, there
were so many things to get entangled with."

After they had given evidence at the Board
of Trade enquiry, Captain Brine, of H.M.S.
" Lord Warden," and Captain Robertson, the
Harbour Master, thanked them publicly for the
work they had done.

Then Henry finished with a characteristic
little incident.

" Efterwards yen o' th' divers cum ti me an'
he says, ' Cum an' ha' yer mornin' drappie.' "

" What de ye mean?" ses I.

"A drap o' whisky," says he, "ti keep the
caad oot."

168 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

" Whisky," says I. " My man, aw'll tell tha
what it is, aw'm twice as aad as ony on ye here,
aw can wark as weel as ony on ye, an' if ye
continee yer whisky drinkin' aw'll still be

warkin' when ye're dune for . Him an' his

whisky !" he concluded with contempt.

The following is taken from the Sunderland
Weekly Times of January 9th, 1880: —

"Return of Mr. Henry Watts. — Diving op-
erations were suspended on Monday afternoon [Jan.
5th, 1880], and yesterday the divers left for their
several homes, Mr. Watts, of Sunderland, and Mr.
Barclay, of Shields, journeyed south together and
arrived at home early this evening. Although our
friend Watts was only engaged three days in actual
diving operations, he seems to have gained the good
opinions of all who witnessed the manner in which
he went about his duties. Referring to Monday's
work we find the following flattering remarks in the
Edinburgh Evening News: — 'Watts, who is evi-
dently the most experienced diver of the lot, was
complimented by Captain Brine, of the "Lord War-
den," on the way he did his work. Watts was then
on the ladder preparing for another descent, his son
standing ready to screw on the mouthpiece, and
replied 'That's all right. Thank ye kindly, sir.'
Then with a ' Gan on, hinny,' to the man at the air
pump, and * Screw up !' to his son, he disappeared

TAY BRIDGE DISASTER 169

in an instant. He went in the direction of the
engine, but the tide had now turned and was set-
ting towards the girders, and he was obliged to
give up. When his assistants had removed his
ponderous dress it was found to be half filled with
water. Watts has had an eventful career, and has
saved thirty-three persons from drowning.'

4 'We paid a visit to our friend last night, and
found him in capital health, but rather disappoint-
ed at having been obliged to discontinue the search
for bodies, which we know he was quite willing to
carry on without fee or reward, excepting the plea-
sure of handing the ' poor things over to their
friends.' Diving operations, he says, were never
carried on under greater difficulties. Usually the
men are able to see some distance from the glass of
the helmet, but owing to the muddy condition of
the estuary, ■ I could not see a finger before me,
and had to grope about in total darkness,' as he ex-
pressed it. . . We think the people of Sunder-
land may well feel satisfied at the assistance given
by their townsman in the hope of recovering the
bodies of the unfortunate victims, and to solve the
mystery which at present surrounds the cause of
the accident."
After all was over, the money in payment for
his services was sent on to the Commissioners,
but Henry refused to take it, asserting that to
do so after offering his services free would be to

i;o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

cast a slur upon his townsmen. Mr. Dodds, the
Commissioners' general manager, tried to per-
suade him to take it, pointing out that as the
authorities at Dundee had sent the money there
could not be anything wrong in accepting it, but
Henry was firm and refused to take it. He
says that it was finally agreed to send it to a
charity, but which charity received it there is no
record to show. The following letter, however,
shows his position in the matter : —

From the Sunderland Weekly Times, 16th
January, 1880 : —

11 Heroic Conduct of the Sunderland Diver.
— Mr. Dodds, the general manager of the River
Wear Commissioners, writing to Captain Robert-
son, Harbour Master, at Dundee, says : — ' The
Commissioners will make no charge whatever for
the use of the diving gear, and Watts positively de-
clines to accept anything for his diving services at
Dundee. He left home simply as a volunteer, and
hoped that he might be able to recover some of the
bodies of the unfortunate victims, and he appears
much concerned at not having been successful,
although the reason given in your letter certainly
ought to satisfy him. He is a sterling good fellow,
and at all times most anxious to do good. He
speaks very highly of the great kindness he has re-

TAY BRIDGE DISASTER 171

ceived from yourself and from all those with whom
he came in contact during his stay.' "

In view of the above statement the following
letter is also of interest : —

Queen's Hotel, Dundee,

Jan. 14th, 1880.
Dear Sir,

Thanks for the photograph, which has been sent
to me here, hence the delay in acknowledging it.
I shall preserve it as a memento of a sad affair in
which the original of it did his duty nobly without
thought of recompense.

Yours very truly,

D. Wilson.
Mr. H. Watts, Sunderland.

CHAPTER XV

A NOVEL USE FOR A DIVER.

Death hath ten thousand several doors

For men to take their exit. — JohnWebster.

THE supreme court of appeal for all authors,
whether great or small, is that mystic but
multitudinous personage always referred to as
"the gentle reader." Some experience of this
ubiquitous judge has taught me two things: first,
that "the gentle reader" must be kept interest-
ed and entertained, or his verdict, from which
there is no appeal, will be against the book ; and
second, that he will not tolerate an anti-climax.
The knowledge of these two rules is the all-suf-
ficient excuse for paying less attention to the
order in which the events now to be related oc-
curred than to the importance of them. Merely
to recite, one after the other, the rescues
effected by Mr. Watts, would make but
monotonous reading, in spite of the thrilling
nature of some of them; and monotony "the

NOVEL USE FOR A DIVER 173

gentle reader" will not have at any price. That
supreme judge must therefore pardon the ap-
parent want of sequence as to dates in the fol-
lowing chapters.

On January, 19th, 1895, a full-rigged ship,
the " Erato," of Hamburg, was lying in the
South Dock, Sunderland, waiting to take in a
cargo of coals. Just before noon a youth of
nineteen, named J. C. Kanscheit, was sent by
the chief officer into the forepeak to get a shovel.
As he did not return after the lapse of a quarter
of an hour, the second officer was sent to look
for him. That officer upon descending the
ladder into the forepeak, was seized with a
dizziness in the head which left him absolutely
helpless. The chief officer had followed his
subordinate almost immediately, and he, too, was
similarly affected. The two men stood gaz-
ing at each other in a perfectly powerless state,
though quite aware that they were slowly be-
coming insensible, yet too benumbed to help
themselves in any way.

Fortunately for the two officers some of the
seamen had seen them go down ; they went to
inquire the cause, and seeing how things were,

174 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

promptly hauled them on deck. Arrived there
they, by dumb show, indicated that the youth
Kanscheit was still down below, and then both
of the officers fell to the deck insensible.

Naturally the mysterious occurrence caused
a wild state of excitement, and while some of
the crew set to work to restore the two mates
to consciousness, the third mate, accompanied
by three sailors, slid down the ladder into the
forepeak with the object of rescuing the young
man. Their attempt was futile, for as soon as
they reached the flooring of the forepeak they
found themselves unable to move a muscle, and
stood staring vacantly at each other.

These repeated failures and the dreadful con-
sequences of attempting to enter the place, made
the rest of the men more cautious, and instead
of any more of them going below, they brought
ropes and with the utmost difficulty hauled the
four men on deck. As soon as they came into
the fresh air they all fell to the deck insensible.

By this time the mysterious affair had been
noised about, and a large and awe-stricken crowd
surrounded the vessel. Doctors were sent for,
and very soon three were on board attending

NOVEL USE FOR A DIVER 175

to the sufferers, who were promptly taken to the
Infirmary.

At this point someone suggested that what
was wanted was a diver, and the happy idea was
acted upon at once, Mr. Watts being brought to
the ship. Hastily donning his diving suit he de-
scended into the fatal forepeak, and searched the
whole of the first floor but could find no trace of
the young man. He then went into the lower
hold of the forepeak. But his diving dress,
which was quite impervious to water, could not
keep out the more insidious fumes of the pois-
onous air, which entered his dress and made him
so ill that he had to ascend to the deck. A
drink of water and the fresh air put him right,
and once more he went below, This time he
succeeded in finding the body of the young man
and brought it up. The youth was quite dead,
and it was judged from a terrible gash in his
forehead and other marks of injury, that he had
fallen from the first to the second floor of the
place and had died there. One of the men who
had gone to the rescue died in the Infirmary a
few hours after being taken there. At the
Coroner's inquiry it was proved that the two

176 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

men had died from asphyxia, caused by foul air
produced by the ignition of the contents of a
cask of black paint in the forepeak, but how the
contents of the cask had become ignited was
never discovered.

CHAPTER XVI

SOME INTERESTING FACTS ABOUT DIVING.

A true understanding of things is to be derived from the
things themselves. — Scaliger.

IT often happens that a man will pay a big
price to hear some great musical artist, only
to come away at the close of the performance
sadly disappointed. In such cases the fault is
not in the artist but in the listener, who has not
sufficient knowledge of the art to appreciate the
great technical difficulties which have been over-
come to enable the artist to do what he does.
It is the same with all arts and professions ; we
must have at least some little knowledge of the
technicalities of them if we are to understand
the achievements of those who are experts in
them.

The popular ideas as to the business of a
diver are, generally speaking, vague and erro-
neous. Possibly nine people out of ten, even
of those living in seaport towns, are absolutely

N

178 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

ignorant of the commonest facts relating to div-
ing ; and to people from the country there is
something uncanny about the whole business.
The man in the street supposes that all that is
necessary to enable a man to become a diver,
is to put an air-tight suit on him, clap a brass
helmet on his head, pump air to him and —
" there you are!"

Until recent years there was a great deal of
rule-of-thumb in connection with diving ; and
divers were seriously injured, or even lost their
lives, without anyone knowing the real reason
why. Then gradually empiricism gave way to
Science, culminating in the appointment of a
Deep Diving Committee by the Admiralty in
1906. This Committee's conclusions and re-
commendations are published, with much other
valuable information, in A Diving Manual, a
beautifully illustrated book written by Mr. R. H.
Davies, Managing Director of Messrs Siebe,
Gorman, & Co., Ltd., the well-known submarine
engineers, of Westminster Bridge Road, Lon-
don. By the kind permission of this firm I am
enabled to give the reader some interesting in-
formation with regard to diving, information

FACTS ABOUT DIVING 179

without which it is impossible to appreciate
rightly the work of Harry Watts as a diver.

" A set of ordinary diving apparatus consists
essentially of seven parts, viz., (a) a helmet with
corselet ; (b) a waterproof diving dress ; (c) a
length of flexible tube with metal couplings ; (d)
pair of weighted boots ; (e) pair of lead weights
for breast and back ; (f) a life line ; (g) an air
pump.

"Air is supplied to the diver through a non-
return valve at the back of the helmet by means
of a flexible tube connected with the air pump.
The air escapes through a spring valve at the
side of the helmet, this valve being adjustable
by the diver. With this arrangement the pres-
sure of the air in the helmet is always equal to,
or slightly greater than, the water pressure at
the outlet valve.

" It is absolutely necessary that the diver
should breathe compressed air, otherwise his
breathing would be instantly stopped and blood
would flow from his nose and mouth. In order
to enable him to sink and to stand firmly on the
bottom, he carries a 4olb. leaden weight on his
breast and a similar weight on his back, and

180 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

i6lb. of lead on each boot. Altogether the
weight of the equipment which he actually
wears is about 1751b.

" Besides the air pipe the diver is usually
connected with the surface by a signal or life
line, in which, in most cases, are embedded
telephone wires.* He usually descends by a
rope (the ' shot-rope '), which is attached to a
heavy weight which has been previously lowered
to the bottom, and on reaching the bottom takes
with him a line (the ' distance-line ') attached
to this weight, so that he can always find the
* shot-rope ' again.

" As a diver enters the water the superfluous
air in his dress is driven out through the outlet
valve by the pressure of the water on the legs
and body. The water seems to grip him all
round. If the valve is fairly open he will feel
his breathing rather laboured by the time he
gets his valve just under water. The reason of
this is that the pressure in his lungs is that of
the water at the valve outlet, whereas the pres-
sure on his chest and abdomen is greater by
something like a foot of water. He is thus

*A modern development. Mr. Watts had not this advantage.

FACTS ABOUT DIVING 181

breathing against pressure, and if he has to
breathe deeply, as during exertion, the effect
becomes serious.

" One of the first things therefore that the
diver has to learn is to avoid this adverse pres-
sure by adjusting the pressure on the spring on
the outlet valve, so that the breathing is always
quite free. The spring on the valve at the same
time regulates the amount of air in the dress,
and therefore the buoyancy of the diver. A
practised diver can thus slip easily, and without
exertion, up or down the shot-rope. The
breathing is, of course, easiest when the dress
is full of air down to the level of the abdomen ;
but, when this is so, the diver runs a risk of
being ' blown up.'

11 It will also be readily understood that a
horizontal, or nearly horizontal, position is the
easiest one for a diver's breathing, and many
divers work crawling on the ground. In this
position it may happen that too much air gets
into the dress. If the air is allowed to get into
the legs of the dress, the diver is capsized and
blown helplessly to the surface, or he may be
caught by a rope or other obstruction, and hung

182 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

up in a helpless position with his legs upper-
most, the excess of air being unable to escape at
the outlet valve since it is downwards. To
avoid this risk there is an arrangement for
lacing up the legs of the dress. With the legs
laced up, the head always comes uppermost if
the diver tends to float upwards, hence the
excess of air escapes by the valve."

The greatest authenticated depth at which
divers have done practical work is 35 fathoms =
210 feet. This was accomplished by Lieut.
Damant and Gunner Catto of the Royal Navy,
in August, 1906. The reader will realise better
what this great depth means if a comparison is
made with something already known to him.
It is more than twice the depth from Wear-
mouth bridge to the surface of the river ; and
once and a half that of the Nelson Monument
in London.

Possible accidents to divers are classed under
four heads: — (1) Caisson Disease; (2) Asphyxia
or carbonic acid gas (C02) poisoning ; (3)
drowning ; (4) hemorrhage.

Caisson disease is the formation of air bubbles
in the blood of tissues, owing to the too sudden

FACTS ABOUT DIVING 183

decompression of the diver — that is to say the
too sudden return to the normal pressure of the
atmosphere after breathing compressed air. The
diver breathes three important gases — oxygen,
nitrogen, and COz. Of these the nitrogen alone
can remain and accumulate in the blood ; the
oxygen is used up by the blood, and the breath-
ing prevents the pressure of C02 from ever
increasing ; so that the only gas which accumu-
lates in abnormal quantity when the diver is
under pressure is the nitrogen.

"When the gas is forced into a soda water
bottle under pressure, the water appears to be
unchanged so long as the pressure is kept up,
but the moment we reduce the pressure by tak-
ing out the cork, we see the gas come bubbling
off the liquid.

11 If we apply the analogy to diving, the diver
is the soda water bottle, and his blood is the
fluid in the bottle. As the diver descends, nitro-
gen under pressure is forced into contact with
his blood. The blood takes up the nitrogen
from the air. So long as he stays below under
that pressure, his blood appears to be unaltered ;
when, however, he rises, the excess of nitrogen

1 84 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

that the blood has taken up begins slowly to
bubble off; if the blood were as fluid as water
it would come off as rapidly as from the soda
water. Fortunately for the diver the blood is a
thickish, albuminous fluid, in which bubbles do
not readily form, and, as far as we can see, it
can retain about twice the amount in solution
that water can keep at any given pressure.
Every diver knows that it is quite safe to come
up from a depth of from five to six fathoms to
the surface as quickly as he likes ; the reason
for this will now be easily understood, since at
such a depth the blood has only twice as much
nitrogen in it as it has on the surface, and there-
fore bubbles are unlikely to form. If, however,
the diver has been for any considerable time at,
say, jo fathoms and then comes up quickly, it
is almost certain that bubbles will form and
cause serious symptoms."

These bubbles of nitrogen may come off in
the blood vessels themselves, filling the right
side of the heart with air, and causing death in
a few minutes. In less sudden cases the bub-
bles form in the brain or spinal cord, leading
to paralysis of the legs (diver's palsy), whilst in

FACTS ABOUT DIVING 185

less serious cases there may be only severe pains
in the joints and muscles.

When a diver has come up quickly from a
considerable depth, and shows symptoms of this
disease, " the only chance of recovery is quickly
to recompress the sufferer " by lowering him
down again into water for ten or fifteen fathoms.
" Even if the diver is quite unconscious this
procedure should be followed, as it affords the
only chance of his life being saved."

Another class of cases is where paralytic
symptoms come on from ten minutes to half an
hour after the diver has returned to the surface.

The danger of drowning arises from the lia-
bility of the diving dress to be torn ; and hem-
orrhage is usually caused by the blocking of the
Eustachian tubes — narrow pipes at the back of
the throat through which air can pass to the in-
ner side of the ear drum.

" The superficial area of an ordinary - sized
man's body is about 2,160 square inches, so that
in atmospheric air the total pressure on the
man's body is 32,400 lb. At a depth of 33
feet of sea water, the total pressure would be
64,800 lb. So long as the pressure is equally

1 86 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

distributed throughout the body by the body
fluids, it has no effect."

The total weight of a diver's equipment (that
is, the parts which he actually wears, and exclu-
sive of his air pipe) is about 175 lb. ; therefore
a diver (say a twelve-stone man), fully equipped,
would have a total weight of 343 lb.

" The depth to which daylight penetrates
under water varies with the locality. For in-
stance, in some of the Scottish lochs the water
is so dark that daylight is lost to the diver when
but a few feet below the surface. On the other
hand, off the Rock of Gibraltar and in some
tropical waters, he can see perfectly clearly when
thirty fathoms (180 feet) and more down.

11 For deep sea diving, or work involving very
long stays on the bottom at more than ten fath-
oms (60 feet), men beyond the age of forty-five
ought not to be employed. Really fat men
should never be allowed to work in compressed
air."

The air pump is worked by two men for
shallow depths, but three or even four men are
required when the diver is working at a great
depth. The air pump is fitted with pressure

FACTS ABOUT DIVING 187

gauges, which show the number of revolutions
per minute required to raise the pressure to any
number of pounds per square inch up to 75 lb.

" On public works in England the rate of pay-
to helmet divers is from 2/- to 2/6 per hour. In
some cases, however, the men are paid a stand-
ing wage of about 30/- to £2 per week, and
an extra 1/6 per hour when diving.

11 In the case of well work, flooded mines,
salvage operations, &c, the pay depends upon
the depth of water and the risk incurred. Well
work : from 1 4/- to 20/- per shift. Flooded mines :
from 20/- to 40/- a shift. Salvage work (ship
raising) : in some cases where vessels are sunk
in shallow water, the divers are paid a standing
wage of 20/- a day, ' work or play ' ; in others
the pay may be a standing wage of £2 a week,
plus an extra sum per hour when diving ; or the
men may be paid for diving time only, from 20/-
a tide and upwards. In cases where the diver
provides his own apparatus and linesmen, he
may get 40/- per shift or tide.

" In cases of deep sea salvage (cargo and
treasure recovery), the divers are sometimes
paid a weeky wage, plus a percentage on the

188 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

value recovered, calculated according to the
depth of water, &c. In the case of the
'Alphonso XII.' and the 'Skyro' operations,
Lambert and Erostarbe received £40 and £30
a month respectively, plus five per cent, of the
value of the specie they brought up. Lambert
received ,£70,000, Erostarbe £10,000."

Those few extracts from Mr. Davis's very
interesting book do not by any means do full
justice to the subject ; but they may perhaps
help the reader to comprehend and appreciate
more fully than he otherwise would the inci-
dents of Henry Watts's life as a diver which
have already been related and those which are
now to be told.

CHAPTER XVII

DANGEROUS WORK.

He holds no parley with unmanly fears :
Where duty bids, he confidently steers.

— Wordsworth.

ON June 30th, 1877, an official from the
Dalton-le-Dale Waterworks called upon
Henry Watts with a view to securing his ser-
vices. The special work required was to go
down a " pilot shaft " to take out a plug and re-
place it with a longer one. Henry asked how
deep the water was, and on being told twenty-
five fathoms (150 feet), he said, "Well, I am
getting up in years, and I don't care to risk go-
ing down that depth.* If any man's life was
in danger I'd go down — I'd willingly go and try
to save him, but I'll not go for pay."

" Can you tell me where to get a diver then?"

* Mr. Watts was then in his 51st year, and though quite able to
do his ordinary work as a diver, in the shallow water of the docks
and river, was past the age when he could go to great depths
without serious risk.

i9o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

"Oh, anywhere about the Tyne," was the
reply ; and from a number of names Henry
gave him he finally secured the services of a
Mr. Littleboy, a big stout man, about eighteen
stone weight.

A local newspaper of July 6th, 1877, in an
account of what followed, says : —

" On Thursday morning Mr. Littleboy went down
again about 11 o'clock. His dress and the ma-
chinery were all in good order, and his brother and
a cousin attended to the air pump. A system of
quarter hour signals had been adopted, and all went
on well until about two o'clock. Then for the first
time the signals of those on terra firma were not
replied to, and naturally great alarm spread among
those present. Attempts were made to pull Little-
boy up the shaft, by means of the gear provided,
but they unfortunately proved ineffectual. Failing
to get diving apparatus from Seaham, those in
authority at once communicated with the River
Wear Commissioners at Sunderland."

It was on Thursday that Henry had been
asked to go out, and it was exactly a week after-
wards that he was surprised by a visit from Mr.
Wake, the River Wear Commissioners' engi-
neer, who asked him if he was prepared to keep
his promise about the Dalton shaft. He had

DANGEROUS WORK 191

forgotten the promise, but on being reminded
of it said promptly, " Certainly, I'll go!" and
he at once went off to see Mr. Dodds, the Com-
missioners' general manager.

That gentleman, of course, gave him permis-
sion to go, at the same time telling him to be
very careful and to take the best gear and the
best assistants he could get. Mr. Dodds and
Mr. Wake both went out to Dalton and re-
mained there till Henry had finished his task.

Arrived at Dalton he found two divers there
from Seaham, but they had made no attempt to
go down. Henry hastily donned his dress and
descended.

Having read the facts about diving in the
previous chapter, the reader will be able to form
some idea of what Henry had to risk in his
voluntary task. The depth of the shaft from
the bank to the surface of the water was 312
feet, and from the surface of the water to where
the diver had to work was 120 feet,# and the
work had to be done, of course, in absolute dark-
ness.

* The depth of water had been reduced by 30 feet before the
diving operations were begun.

192 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Let us, just for once, accompany him in
imagination on his perilous journey. Take care
with the diving dress, now ! We are in a hurry,
yes, but a moment's gain by neglect now may
mean an hour's wait presently to put it right —
and it may mean more than that, so be careful.
Is everything fixed ? Yes, well, on with the
helmet — wait a minute, don't screw on the front
glass just yet ; who's at the air pump ? for much
depends upon them. And who's at the signal
line and air pipe ? for that is as important as the
air pump. Ah, they are all capable, trustworthy
men ; screw up then !

The diameter of the shaft is ten feet, and
across it is a winch with a steel rope to which
is attached a " kibble," or basket, in which the
workmen descend. Into the "kibble" he gets
and is lowered carefully down the shaft — down
and down, 312 feet he descends before he
reaches the surface of the water. It is a long
way down, but it is the easiest part of his
journey. He pauses a minute on the stage
there to gather his energies together, then, with
an " All well," signal on the rope, he enters the
water. There is here but a dread silence and a

DANGEROUS WORK

i93

/OS-lfr

-5///T

3/6ift

\* 4*22/^.

A Short Shaft.

B Deep Shaft.

C Drift connecting

A and B.
D Water Surface.

Note. — The section show-
ing- earth between shafts
is not drawn to scale,
it has been widened to
give a better idea of the
two shafts.

Depth of Well 430 ft.
Depth of Water in Well

120 ft.
Diameter of Shaft B 10 ft.

Section of Pilot Shaft,

Dalton

Pumping Station.

Sunderland

and South Shields

Water Co.

^l&kfole scale-x in. = 105-6 ft.
W

i94 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

darkness that may be felt. What unknown
perils is he going to? His only guide is the
air pipe or the rope of the diver already below.
He slips down it, down and down, but suddenly
his hand grips the rope and he stops his descent.

What is the matter ? There is a singing in his
ears, and a horrible dizziness has seized him,
while his whole body feels as though gripped in
a giant vice. But he knows what these things
mean. He has gone down so quickly that the
pressure of the air in his dress has not been kept
equal to the pressure of the water ; and here, as
everywhere, Law, which knows no mercy, is
waiting to punish instantly any mistake that
may be made.

But he has stopped in the nick of time. He
hastily signals " More air! " regulates the valve
in his helmet, and as the pumps go round more
quickly, the pressure inside his dress overcomes
that outside his dress, and once more he breathes
freely.

Down he goes again, for he is no more than
half-way to where he would be ; down and
down, but more warily now, for every foot he
descends the pressure of the water increases.

DANGEROUS WORK 195

At last his feet touch the " brattice " or small
stage ; he signals " Arrived ", and stands a
moment to get his bearings. There is no ray
of light, no sound, no movement ; he is alone in
a dead world, 1 20 feet under water !

What next ? Cautiously he feels about the
stage to find how wide it may be, but is careful
not to let go of the other diver's rope. He kneels,
slipping his hand along the rope, which leads
underneath the stage. Be careful now, Harry,
be very careful, for the least slip and you will
never see daylight again !

At this depth the water pressure is 52 lb. to
the square inch, so that there is on the whole
surface of his body the enormous pressure of
112,220 lb. — some 50 tons above atmospheric
pressure ! But so long as the pressure inside
and outside the dress is equal he feels no
effect of it — at present. The danger will be in
coming up again, for a too sudden release from
that great pressure is as dangerous as a too
sudden descent into it, more so indeed. But
danger! He is surrounded by dangers. Let
but the air pump go wrong for a few minutes, or
the air pipe become jammed, and a fearful death

196 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

awaits him. Not death by suffocation, no, that
were kindly compared with what would happen ;
for, the diving dress being flexible and the
helmet inflexible, if the pressure of air inside
the dress be reduced, the giant pressure of the
water will squeeze his body up into the helmet
— a fearful possibility view it how we may.

But he is not thinking of these things, nor of
the many other possibilities of his strange situa-
tion ; his mind is intent on the task he has in
hand. Across the narrow staging he gropes his
way, till at last the other diver's rope is straight
up and down, and he knows he is not far from
him. Carefully he lays himself flat down on the
staging and feels underneath it. Ugh ! He
hastily withdraws his hand, for he knows now,
only too well, what has happened. What is it ?
He has felt the feet of the other man, which are
jammed against the underneath part of the
staging, for he is hanging head downwards like
a fly on the ceiling, and Henry knows he is
dead, must have been dead for some hours.
The poor fellow had probably, as the newspaper
report says, " taken a faint fit and fallen off the
stage." Yes, and as the air supply was kept

DANGEROUS WORK 197

up without intermission, he had been forced up
by it, head downwards, against the under side
of the stage, where the pressure of air would
keep him fixed and unable to move even had he
been conscious, for the air-escape valve is in the
helmet, and it being downward no air can es-
cape till the whole dress is full at high pressure.

Does the reader realize what had happened ?
An ordinary inflated football is a familiar illus-
tration of compressed air. Press it between
the hands and feel its resistance. And that is
only a very low pressure. Under the high pres-
sure of these great depths the diver's dress will,
unless he properly regulates the air-valve, be-
come rigid, so that his arms and legs will stand
out from him like iron bars, and with no more
chance of his bending them than if they were
made of that metal.

So one can get some conception of what had
happened to that poor diver at Dalton, and so,
too, one can begin to realize the risk Harry
Watts took in going to the rescue. Who then
shall grudge him the honours paid to him for
deeds such as this ?

And Littleboy ? Alas, it was a terrible death !

198 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

One can but hope, if he did fall off the stage in
a faint, that he never recovered consciousness,
for oh, the eternity of horror if conscious while
in such a position, and knowing there was abso-
lutely no chance of help ! 'Tis a nightmare of
a scene, pursuing one during sleep for many a
night after reading of it. God help us, that
men should perforce have thus to go hobnob-
bing with Death for a crust of bread !

Henry Watts went down the shaft at nine
o'clock in the evening, and came to the surface
a quarter of an hour later to tell the news of
Littleboy's death. Then after a short inter-
val he descended again, and this time brought
up the body of the unfortunate diver.

Why did he come up after only a quarter of
an hour under water ? Why not have finished
what he had to do while he was below ? Very
natural questions, and I asked him to explain.
He said he came up because he wanted to get
his breath, and also because he was being nipped
by the pressure to such an extent that he thought
his ribs were being broken. The scientific ex-
planation is to be found in the book issued by
Messrs. Siebe Gorman, & Co. I n the table show-

DANGEROUS WORK 199

ing the time limits allowed in deep water, &c,
it is stated that to stop at the depth he was
working at for twenty-five minutes it is neces-
sary for the diver, in ascending, to take a stop-
page of five minutes at thirty feet, ten minutes
at twenty feet, and fifteen minutes at ten feet,
a total of thirty-three minutes in ascending
to the surface. This is, of course, to allow
the proper time for decompression and to get
rid of the nitrogen which has accumulated in
the blood. To ascend after but a few minutes
would not be dangerous, because the nitrogen
would not have had time to get into the blood
to such an extent as to be serious.

Here, then, was Harry Watts, though many
years past the time of life when it was safe for
him to go into great depths, taking that risk,
and the many others which accompanied it, for
the purpose of trying to rescue a fellow man
from danger; and finding it was too late to do
that he still incurred the risk to recover the
body. But that being done he would not under-
take to do the work which Littleboy had tried
to do, and men were got from Messrs. Siebe
Gorman, & Co., London, to complete the task.

200 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Here we may appropriately introduce the
following letter : —

While Mr. Littleboy, diver, from Tyne Dock, was
engaged in the well at Dalton Water Works, on
the 5th of July, 1877, taking a plug out of a bore-
hole, he accidentally met his death while at work,
and could not be got out on account of the air pipe
coming in contact with the pump, until we obtained
the assistance of Mr. Henry Watts, diver for the
River Wear Commissioners. Mr. Watts went down
through 19 fathoms, 5 feet 6 inches [120 feet less
six inches], before he released him. Total depth
from surface, 72 fathoms [432 feet].

J. R. RUDDICK.

Who was Mr. Ruddick ? For a long time
this was a problem which no one could solve.
Even Henry, who had the above letter from
him, vowed that he had never known such a
man. He spoke of Mr. Robson, the engineer
at Dalton, and others spoke of him too, but no
one seemed to know Mr. Ruddick. Then by
an accident I discovered that Mr. Robson and
Mr. Ruddick were one and the same person.
The full and correct name is James Robson
Ruddick, and he was the Master Sinker at

DANGEROUS WORK 201

Dalton. He was known to everyone by his
family name of Robson, but of course when
signing documents he was bound to put his
correct name.

Mr. Davis, Managing Director of Messrs.
Siebe, Gorman & Co., Ltd., who kindly went
through these chapters on diving with a view
to correcting them, in commenting on the
Dalton incident, says : — " You describe Watts
as having been fully dressed before he went
over the edge of the well. . . . Nowadays,
we would, if at all possible, rig up a stage just
above the surface of the water, where the diver
would put on his heavy gear (boots, weights,
and helmet), and thus be saved the labour of
carrying all this deadweight. It is quite possible
that Watts did carry this weight from the
ground level to the water, and, in that case, all
the more credit is due to him."

Inquiry shows that Mr. Watts did go down
fully dressed as described. The matter was so
urgent that he got into his diving dress im-
mediately on his arrival, and went down without
a moment's loss of time.

Here are some letters which show apprecia-

202 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

tion of the successful work which Mr. Watts
did at flooded mines, wells, &c. : —

Wheatley Hill Colliery,
near Ferry Hill,

Dec. 27th, 1872.

Gentlemen, — I am glad to be able to inform you
that your very worthy servant, Mr. Watts, has
succeeded in the most complete and satisfactory
manner in liberating and setting to work the main
pumping set of our colliery.

The matter was threatening to become a very
serious affair for the company, the bottom set of
pumps having become choked by the piling up of
the shaft with debris. Pumping consequently
ceased, the water rose, filling up a considerable
part of the mine, and threatening to drown all the
horses and ponies. To have drawn the pumps out
would have involved a serious cost.

It was fortunate, therefore, for us to be favoured
with the brave, heroic, and able services of your
Mr. Watts, who had to accomplish his work under
the most adverse circumstances, but who succeeded
in the most pleasing and determined style.

I am, gentlemen, yours very truly,

Jos. Finney, Engineer.

River Wear Commissioners,
Sunderland.

DANGEROUS WORK 203

Wheatley Hill Colliery Office,
Ferry Hill,

June 20th, 1874.

Mr. Henry Watts, Diver,
Sunderland.

My Dear Sir, — I write this by way of expressing
my best wishes for your future, because of the
hazardous calling named above, for which, how-
ever, you seem admirably adapted in that strong
perseverance and determination which it has been
our misfortune to witness again of you at Wheatley
Hill — misfortune as regards our accident to pumps,
but, I should say, good fortune as it regards being
able to secure the very noble services you have
rendered us.

I am happy to inform you that the pumps are
again in full swing, and the miners, I dare say,
thankful that a prospect of early work is presented
to them.

I have the pleasure to be, my dear sir,
Yours faithfully,

Jos. Finney, Engineer.

Wheatley Hill Colliery Office,
Ferry Hill,

Jan. 20th, 1879.
Dear Sir, — I am very happy to inform you that
we are now in first-class order ; we have got our
water down and sump all cleaned out. So much

204 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

for your able services in taking off the clack door.
Had it not been so we would have been in a sad
plight.

All friends send their respects to you, and would
be glad to see you at any time, but not on such an
occasion.

Yours truly,

W. Potts.
Mr. Watts, Sunderland.

Lambton Colliery Works,
Fence Houses,

Oct. nth, 1878.
Dear Sir, — I have much pleasure in bearing testi-
mony to the valuable services rendered by you at
the Earl of Durham's Houghton Colliery, in recover-
ing a i2in. set of pumps which had been lost by the
breaking of a rope while the bucket was being
changed, the water rising some twenty-five feet
above the door. And although you had never been
in the pit before, you succeeded in getting the
pumps to work to my entire satisfaction in a little
over two hours, and thus saved us the tedious and
expensive process of drawing the set.
I am,

Yours respectfully,

James Young, Supt. Engineer.

Mr. Henry Watts,

14, Sans Street, Sunderland.

DANGEROUS WORK 205

Trimdon Grange Colliery,
County Durham,

Feb. 10th, 1887.
Mr. Watts,

Dear Sir, — I have much pleasure in bearing testi-
mony to the valuable services rendered by you at
the Walter Scott pumping- pit, by your recovering
a 24m. pumping set, and getting the clack out and
replacing it again. It has saved us a great ex-
pense, and also been the means of keeping the other
collieries at work. Now we have got the bucket
in the working barrel again and we are going all

right.

Yours truly,

Geo. Bullick, Engineer.

Hendon Paper Works.

This is to certify that Mr. Henry Watts, diver
for the River Wear Commissioners, did on the
undermentioned dates put our deep well pump into
working order to our entire satisfaction : —

Our bottom clack, which is 17 feet below the
surface of the water, we had tried to draw, and
after all our attempts failed we sent for Mr. Watts,
who came with his diving apparatus, went down,
took off the bottom door, and took off the clack
and replaced it with a new one. On examining the
door he found that it also was cracked right across
the centre. This he replaced temporarily with a
mahogany door. Feb. 9th, 1877.

206 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Second Time. — After we had got a new door
cast Mr. Watts was sent for and he again went
down the well, took off the wood door and put on
the metal one. Feb. 12th, 1877.

Third Time. — The joint again failed, caused by
the weld of hoop-iron breaking away. Mr. Watts
was sent for to remake the joint, which he did.
Feb. 13th, 1877.

Fourth Time. — Mr. Watts was sent for to renew
the joint of the door again. This was a bad joint
to make, the casting being slightly twisted and
rough from the foundry. Sept. 29th, 1877.
Signed,

Henry Glenny, Foreman.

Sunderland and South Shields Water Co.,
Fawcett Street, Sunderland,

2nd Sept., 1887.
Mr. Henry Watts, Sunderland.

Dear Sir, — I have pleasure in testifying to the
valuable services rendered by you to this Company
at their Cleadon Pumping Station, by your re-
covering from the well a broken bucket sword and
crossbar which was submerged in about five fathoms

of water.

Yours truly,

J. W. Sutherland, Secretary.

Mr. Watts was once engaged taking off the
clack door of a 24m. set of pumps at Kelloe

DANGEROUS WORK 207

Winning Pit. There was a pump at Kelloe,
and another at the New Winning Pit. The
latter went wrong, and Henry went down to
attend to it as stated, the pump at Kelloe
keeping the water down in the meantime.
While he was at work the pump at Kelloe
suddenly stopped and the water immediately
began to rise where he was working, and that
with such rapidity that it was only with the
greatest exertions on the part of those at bank
that he was rescued, he having to be drawn up
in a loop of rope.

The chief engineer at Newbottle Pit, near
Houghton-le-Spring, once came riding into
Sunderland post haste to secure Mr. Watts' s
services to put a bucket door on a pump. It
was a dangerous piece of work, but was neces-
sary, as the whole neighbourhood for three miles
round was dependent upon the pump for water.
He went off at once, and had a most exhaust-
ing day's work, being under water most of the
time, but succeeded in accomplishing the task.
During the progress of the work he fainted,
owing partly to the heavy work and partly to
the fact that the air pump which supplied him

208 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

with air had been placed in the engine room,
hence warm air was pumped down to him.
When he recovered he asked for a drink.

" Drink of what ?" he was asked, for the en-
gineer and officials doubtless thought that he
had had enough of water, and would require
something stronger.

" Drink o' what ?" Wey, watter, ti be sure !"
said Henry, and water it was, those standing
around giving a hearty cheer at his decision.

It was suggested to Henry that the Dalton
Water Works incident was the most dangerous
piece of work he had ever done as a diver, but
he dissented from this and gave the particulars
of what he considered the most dangerous task
he had ever been engaged in. Near the No. 2
Graving Dock was an engine which pumped
the water out of a long- drift, and in order to
repair the engine it was necessary to put a plug
in position at the far end of the drift to keep
the water out while the engine was being re-
paired. The drift was forty-five feet in length,
and so low that Henry with his diving gear on
could not go along it on his hands and knees,
but had to lie down almost flat and creep along

DANGEROUS WORK 209

in that position as best he could. One diver
had refused to do the work when Henry under-
took it. He went down under the water at the
open end of the drift and made his way along
it, but very slowly. There was an accumula-
tion of fine coal dust in the drift, and his move-
ments stirred this up ; it mixed with the water
and so got into the air valve of his helmet,
causing serious symptoms. When half-way
along he felt he could go no farther and signal-
led to be drawn up. But he could not turn
round, and so as the men above pulled on the
life-line he had to second their efforts by push-
ing himself backward, which he continued to
do till he got into the open water. But he
would not give in, and went down again and
again till he succeeded, though he had to be
treated by the doctor after one of his journeys.

CHAPTER XVIII

A TRAWL NET.

A frame of adamant, a soul of fire,

No dangers fright him, and no labours tire.

— Samuel Johnson.

THE title at the head of this chapter seems
a suitable one under which to gather a
number of incidents in the career of Mr. Watts
which cannot be properly placed under any of
the headings already used, and yet are of suf-
ficient importance to be recorded.

Here, for instance, is a letter from the columns
of the Sunderland Daily Echo which requires
a little explanation. It is headed " Sunderland
Infirmary : a Grateful Patient," and reads : —

Sir, — Allow me through the columns of your
paper to return my heartfelt thanks to the Sisters
and Medical Staff, and especially to Mr. Ranson,
the House Surgeon of the Sunderland Infirmary,
in which institution I have been an inmate for the
last five months. During that time I had my leg
amputated, owing to injury sustained by my being
caught in a coil of rope while mooring my vessel

A TRAWL NET 211

at the Wearmouth Drops. I must say during- the
time I was in the Infirmary that I received the ut-
most attention and greatest kindness. I could not
have had more at my own home. I also take this
opportunity of publicly thanking Mr. Henry Watts,
diver, and his son, and all other persons who have
kindly assisted me.

Yours truly,

Alex. Mather,
Late Master of " Hay & Catherine,"

of Arbroath.
5, St. Vigeans Road,

Arbroath, Nov. 29th, 1877.

The above does not do justice to Mr. Watts s
share in the matter. A short newspaper report
states that on June 26th, 1877, while the " Bon
Accord," steam tug, was going up the river her
keel came in contact with a rope attached to the
schooner " Hay and Catherine," lying at Wear-
mouth Drops. The master of the schooner,
Alex. Mather, was standing close to the rope
on his vessel, and he was caught up by it and
dragged to the ship's side, where his left foot
was pulled almost completely off, dangling only
from his mangled leg by a narrow piece of skin.
Mr. Henry Watts, who was near the Lambton
Drops preparing to dive, heard the shouts for

212 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

help, and he and his son at once jumped into
their boat and boarded the schooner. They
freed Mr. Mather from the rope, rendered first
aid to him, and Henry hailed the tug, took him
ashore in her, and then sent for a cab and took
him to the Infirmary. The patient, as stated
in his letter, was in the Infirmary several
months, and, his wife not being in a position
to come to him, Henry acted the part of the
Good Samaritan during that time, and finally,
on his recovery, promoted a subscription among
some Scottish captains and sent him home to
Arbroath.

It would be difficult to find a better instance
of pluck and determination than the following : —
Henry was in a boat in the river preparing to
run a rope out, when the ship's anchor fell,
smashing the boat, breaking his leg and throw-
ing him into the river. In spite of his serious
and painful injury he actually swam ashore to a
boat slip, up which he crawled a little way, and
from there was conveyed in a cab to Dr. Ward's,
in Church Street.

Early on the morning of June 7th, 1870, a
pleasure party of eleven persons, three adults

A TRAWL NET 213

and eight children, went up the river in a gig
for the purpose of spending the day in the
higher reaches of the river. The Sunderland
Weekly Times of June 7th, 1870, from which
the facts of the case are taken, states that "A
gig called the ' White Lily ' put off from the
Low Quay. . . . On board of her were
Mr. Friend Lamb, boat builder, his wife and five
children, the ages of the children varying from
two years up to ten ; and Mr. Hartley French,
cashier to Mr. Lamb, who also had three of his
children along with him." The boat had got
opposite Burdes's Lime Kilns, when the steam
tug "Wansbeck" came down the river. As
she passed the boat her paddle caught it or
one of the oars, the boat being capsized and
the whole of the party thrown into the river.
Mr. Watts was making his way up the river to
dive when the accident occurred, and he im-
mediately went to the assistance of those strug-
gling in the water, and, along with other willing
helpers, succeeded in saving the whole of them.
When the party was first got on board the steam
tug it was found that two of the children were
missing. Henry suspected that they were still

2i4 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

in the boat, which was floating on the water
bottom upwards. He made all haste to the
boat, managed to right her, and there sure
enough were the two little ones, who were
soon restored to their friends. Henry claims to
have saved but one of the party, but as a matter
of fact he helped to save the majority of them.

He got the whole of the party ashore and did
not leave them till he had seen them safely off
home. Then he returned to the keel in which
he was working and said to the young fellow in
her (a man named Robert Wilson), " Hurry up,
now, and get into the boat, we shall have to
make up for lost time."

Whether it was the desire to hurry or simply
a matter of awkwardness is not known, but at
any rate Wilson fell overboard into 24 feet of
water and would certainly have been drowned
had not Henry jumped in and saved him. The
rescue is reported in a local paper as follows : —

" Narrow Escape from Drowning. — This
morning about nine o'clock, a man named Robert
Wilson fell out of a boat at Lambton Drops. Mr.
Henry Watts, who has during his lifetime rescued
26 persons from drowning, and was engaged in the

A TRAWL NET 215

same noble way at the boat accident this morning
[the accident referred to above], at once went to the
aid of his companion, and succeeded in landing him
without much harm being done."

And here is a letter from the person res-
cued : —

Sunderland,

Sept. 9th, 1875.
Dear Sir, — I feel it my duty to express my grati-
tude to our respected townsman, Mr. Harry-
Watts, for the heroic manner in which he saved
me from drowning on the 7th June, 1870, while
employed on the River Wear near Hetton Drops,
when I accidentally fell overboard in about 24 feet of
water. Mr. Watts sprang from a vessel lying near
into the water and rescued me from my perilous
position. I declare this to be a true statement.
Robert Wilson,

16, Addison Street, Hendon.

We have already seen how ardent an advo-
cate of temperance Henry became after his
conversion, and the following incident will show
how ready he was to put his principles into
practice. On Nov. 4th, 1873, ne nad been
diving at South Hylton, and when his work
was finished he went across the river to see

216 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Squire Ettrick about the removal of some stones.
While they were talking near the North Ferry-
landing, a valuable horse, with dray attached,
belonging to Messrs. Ridley & Cletter, brewers,
Newcastle, accidently fell off the ferry into the
river, dragging the dray laden with casks of ale
with it, and was being washed up the river by
the strong current.

Squire Ettrick on seeing the accident turned
to Henry and said, " Oh, dear me, diver, that's
a bad accident. That horse is worth a hundred
guineas, and I'd give a great deal to have it
saved."

"Wey, aw think aw could save't reet enuff,
Squire, on conditions," said Henry.

11 What conditions, diver ? Be quick ! Be
quick !

<4 Aw'll hetta throw th' cargo owerboard,
that's the first condition."

To this the Squire agreed, and plucking off
some of his clothing, Henry plunged into the
river, reached the dray, tumbled the barrels of
liquor into the river, loosened part of the horse's
harness and then mounted its back. But now,
never having driven a horse in his life, much

'when aw got ontiv its back aw find mesel in a fix.

A TRAWL NET 217

less mounted one, he found himself in a quan-
dary.

" When aw got ontiv its back," he said, "aw
fund mesel in a fix. Aw didn't knaw which
rein ti pull, an' ef aw shouted 4 Away ! ' or ' Gee
whoa !' aw didn't knaw which way th' beast wad
gan. Well, aw jist had ti larn how ti steer him.
Aw pulled yan rein a wee bit and seed which
way he went, and then pulled t' other yan, an'
so aw steered him ashore."

The Squire was delighted and Henry got ^5
for his services ; but he still regrets that he did
not knock the bungs out of the barrels before
jettisoning them ; for they washed ashore, and
he heard that there was a great deal of free
drinking in the neighbourhood of Hylton as a
result.

Here is Squire Ettrick's account of the in-
cident : —

This is to certify that Mr. Henry Watts, of 14,
Sans Street, Sunderland, saved a valuable horse,
November 4th, 1873, belonging to Messrs. Ridley
and Cletter, brewers and wine merchants, New-
castle. The horse slipped over the end of the boat
at Hylton Ferry with a dray laden with casks of

218 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

ale. Mr. Henry Watts went into the water up to
his neck, threw off all the casks into the river, and
then got the horse's harness undone from the dray
at great danger to his life.

Anthony Ettrick, J. P.,

North Hylton, 7th Sept., 1875.

On one occasion both Mr. Watts and his son
narrowly escaped death while engaged in diving
operations. There were six of them on No. 2
Crane Float, belonging to the River Wear
Commissioners, Mr. Watts as diver, his son
and a cousin named Lonsdale, with three other
men, and they were at work near the old South
Pier, right opposite the North Dock, lifting
stones. Henry was under the water and his son
was attending to him, when the latter looking up,
saw a steamer coming out of the North Dock.
He soon saw that something was wrong with
the steamer. They tried to put her helm to
starboard so as to turn her head towards the
river entrance, but she would not answer her
helm. It was found afterwards that the rudder-
chains had jammed in the cleats, a shackle they
had put on being too big to go through.

The steamer therefore came right across the

A TRAWL NET 219

river and was heading straight for the crane
float. Tom Watts saw what was going to
happen, and hurriedly pulled his father to the
surface, but as soon as the diver's head was out
of the water of course he had to get into the float
himself, the weight being far too heavy for the
son to pull in. The steamer struck the crane
float and knocked a huge hole in her, but by that
time the son had got his father's helmet off, and
he at once dragged him aft and put him into
their boat which was in attendance, sending the
other men in with him. As he was about to
get into the boat himself he saw Lonsdale
coming up out of the cabin.

" What are you doing here, man ? " he asked,
"you should be in the boat. Pick up some-
thing quick and jump overboard ; the keel is
sinking ! " and even while he spoke down she
went, bow first, the stern rising high in the air
as she went under.

Young Tom Watts jumped overboard, and
being as much at home in the water as a duck,
he soon came to the surface and looked about
him. He saw Lonsdale clambering among the
wreckage, and as he was sinking and unable

220 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

to help himself, Tom swam to his relief. But
no sooner had the young fellow got alongside
him than Lonsdale, in a panic, flung both arms
round his neck, and the suction from the sinking
keel drew them both down.

Presently they came to the surface again, but
Lonsdale had such a grip of his rescuer that the
latter could not get clear of him and was per-
fectly helpless. He heard his father shout to
the men in the boat, " My God ! My lad's going
to be drowned ! Pull for your lives ! "

The men did pull, and Henry, who, with his
diving gear still on, had jumped into the bows
of the boat, was just in time to reach over and
catch the two men as they were sinking again.
He pulled them into the boat, but so great was
the strain that his wrist was severely injured.
Lonsdale, poor fellow, received such a shock
that he died a few weeks afterwards from the
effects of it.

When that terrible calamity the Victoria Hall
disaster happened on June 1 6th, 1883, when 183
little children were suffocated or crushed to
death, the door of the staircase leading from
the gallery having jammed, Mr. Watts was

A TRAWL NET 221

among the foremost of the helpers. One local
paper commenting on the rescuing of the bodies
says, " One man worked splendidly, and too
much praise cannot be given to him. I think
it was Mr. Watts. When others were excited
and did nothing but wring their hands and cry
out, he was cool and collected and rendered
immense assistance."

A stray leaf from a pamphlet embodying part
of the report of the annual meeting of local
preachers, at which the then Mayor (Mr. J. W.
Wayman), presided, contains a flattering refer-
ence to Mr. Watts. The meeting had evidently
been held just after the disaster, and the Mayor
in referring to it said, " I want to pay a tribute
to one of your own members, I refer to my
friend Henry Watts. I saw him lay hold of
those little corpses one by one and move them
with as soft a hand as a mother would. I do
not hesitate to say here that he is a hero."

But that calamity is too sad to dwell upon
even after so great a lapse of time. Let us
turn to a service of a very different character
which Mr. Watts rendered to the town.

In the Museum in Borough Road is a Pre-

222 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

historic Canoe, found in the bed of the River
Wear by Mr. Watts when engaged in diving
operations. The account of it given in the
19 10 Spring issue of the Sunderland Public
Library Circular, is as follows : —

"This is one of the most important additions
ever made to the antiquities department of the
Museum. This ancient dug-out canoe was found
in the bed of the River Wear at Hylton, near Sun-
derland, about 25 years ago, and was recently pre-
sented to the Corporation by the River Wear Com-
missioners. As may be seen, it was hewn out of
an oak tree trunk ; it is upwards of 2,000 years
old, and may even date back to the stone age. It
may, indeed, be claimed to be Sunderland's earliest
boat, and the forerunner of the many noble vessels
which have for centuries been launched on the Wear,
and have made Sunderland's reputation as the
largest shipbuilding town in the world.

"The details of its discovery are as follows: —
It was discovered by Mr. Harry Watts, the well-
known Sunderland diver and life-saver, when em-
ployed by the Commissioners to remove the ' Brix-
ons,' large stones forming the remains of a bridge
which spanned the river at Hylton. The canoe lay
at the river bottom, covered with alluvial mud and
shingle, and contained human bones, which, unfor-
tunately, were not secured. Its size is about eleven

A TRAWL NET 223

feet long by two feet broad, by one and a half feet
deep. Stone implements shaped like chisels were
also found in the bed of the stream near the same
spot, together with deer horns, relics of the times
when ancient Britons, clad in skins, and armed
with stone axes, hunted the red deer in the prim-
eval forests of the county of Durham. Proof of
the existence of such forests in times of yore is not
wanting, in the shape of huge trees found water-
logged in the bed of the stream ; and it was doubt-
less from the trunk of a similar giant of the forest
that the canoe itself was made, probably carved
out by stone axes, assisted by fire."

CHAPTER XIX

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES.

Man the Life-boat ! Man the Life-boat !

Listen to the tempest's roar !
Man the Life-boat! Man the Life-boat!

Hark! Hark! A ship ashore! — Old Song.

IT is probable that if a true and detailed ac-
count of the local Life-boat services were
written, the name of Henry Watts would be
found on almost every page of that history from
about the year 1850. What Mr. Samuel Storey
had said in 1877, when presenting him with the
medal from the sailors of the town, was no ex-
aggeration : " There never was any occasion of
shipwreck, or of any disaster, but at which he
had been found perfectly willing to suffer all the
trouble and danger necessary in order to do good
on these occasions."

Not only was he a prominent figure in the
work of the Life-boat, but he has been con-
nected with the Volunteer Life Brigade since
its formation. In the Annual Report of that

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 225

Society for 1909-10 there appears in the list of
Committee and Officers the names of two " Hon.
Life Members, by special vote and without sub-
scription ;" the first being Mr. Henry Watts,
Sunderland ; and the second Commander C. F.
W. Johnson, R.N.

Mr. Watts being so closely associated with
the local Life-boat service, a short account
of the origin and development of that service
may be appropriately introduced here before
touching upon the particular instances in which
Mr. Watts took part ; and the more so that I
have been favoured with the loan of some an-
cient and original documents dealing with the
subject from a local point of view ; and am per-
mitted to quote from a work published by the
highest authority on the subject. These ex-
tracts and documents taken together may be
considered as an authoritative and valuable re-
ference ; they will set at rest many doubts ; and
will, the local secretary assures me, render a dis-
tinct service to the cause in Sunderland. We
will deal with the general subject first.

By the kind permission of the author and
publishers I am permitted to quote from The
Q

226 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Life-Boat and its Work, by Sir J. C. Lamb,
Deputy Chairman of the Royal National Life-
boat Institution, a work just published by the
Institution, price i/-, to which excellent little
book the reader is referred for details of the
service, illustrations, &c, which cannot be given
here.

"It is impossible," says the author, "to as-
sign to any one person the merit of inventing
the Life-boat.

" Lionel Lukin, with his plans for increasing
the buoyancy and stability of boats, was first in
the field in this country. ... A coach
builder in Long Acre, he was a very worthy
member of the Worshipful Company of Coach-
makers, of which he became Master in 1793."
It appears that, having purchased a Norway
yawl he converted her into what he called an
" unimmergible boat," tested her on the Thames
and took out a patent. The patent is dated 2nd
November, 1785.

"At about the same time, William Would-
have, a house-painter in South Shields, who
taught singing in the charity school, and event-
ually became parish clerk, a versatile and ec-

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 227

centric genius, was trying to design a boat which
would neither sink nor remain upset ; but his
final model was not made until 1789, between
three and four years after the date of Lukin's
patent.

"A third claimant to the invention was Henry
Greathead, also of South Shields. This gentle-
man received ,£1,200 from Parliament, and a
gold medal and fifty guineas from the Society
of Arts, besides other rewards."

Dealing with a voluminous correspondence
on the merits of the claimants, the author says,
"The materials now available are perhaps
scarcely sufficient for an unassailable judgment ;
but what emerges from the conflicting claims
may be stated thus : Lukin, when he took out
his patent, had not thought of self-righting
qualities, and did not propose to construct a
boat to be specially employed in saving life ;
neither did he propose to establish a Life-boat
service. His aim was to make all kinds of
boats safe and buoyant. . ."

" Wouldhave, unlike Lukin, thought much of
build and design . . . and he intended that
his boat should be a Life-boat and nothing else.

228 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

The kind of seas encountered at
the mouth of the Tyne made it important that a
boat stationed there should have self-righting
qualities, and this gave direction to his aims.
A firm of brewers allowed him to test his
models in their tanks, but it was an accident
which suggested the solution of the problem.
In a ramble, early in 1789, he happened to see
a woman who had just been drawing water from
a well. Her skeel was full, and on the surface
of the water there floated the half of a circular
wooden dish. While he chatted with her before
helping to lift the skeel to her head, he tried to
make the wooden fragment turn over, but at his
every attempt it righted, and would not remain
upside down. Woodhave . . . went off
to continue his experiments at the brewery.
Presently he ran into the office of the firm,
saying that he had discovered the principle he
was looking* for.

"Soon afterwards an advertisement appeared
in the Newcastle Courant offering a premium
of two guineas for a plan or model of a boat
capable of living in the stormy seas at the mouth
of the Tyne. Wouldhave was ready, and sub-

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 229

mitted his model, which is preserved in the
Public Museum at South Shields.

" A careful consideration of the facts will, I
think, lead to the conclusion that Wouldhave
was the father of the self-righting Life-boat, and
Lukin of the staunch non-self-righting sailing
Life-boat.

11 How, then, did Greathead's name become
associated with the Life-boat ? The answer is,
that he was a skilled boatbuilder, accustomed to
the sea as a ship carpenter and mate, and he
was employed to build the Life-boat."

The author deals with this part of the subject
exhaustively, and shows that the only part that
Greathead had in the design of the boat was in
suggesting that its keel should be curved or
"rockered," which was adopted. The com-
mittee which had to adjudicate upon the models
and plans was not satisfied with any of them,
but thought enough of Wouldhave's model to
award him half the premium — which he refused,
but left them his model. Two members of the
committee then utilised the ideas of the different
models and plans, constructed a model of clay,
and it was from this that Greathead built the

23o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

first Life-boat. He built the second Life-boat
in 1798, and before the end of 1803 nad built
31 boats.

Between the North and South Marine Parks
at South Shields, is a monument to the memory
of Wouldhave and Greathead, and close by,
under a shed, stands the superannuated Life-
boat " Tyne," built in 1833 to replace the first
Life-boat. She was reconstructed in 1845, and
was withdrawn from service in 1887. She had
saved 1,024 lives.

M The National Institution for the Preserva-
tion of Life from Shipwreck," now known as the
11 Royal National Life-boat Institution," was
established in 1824.

Having given this short outline of the origin
of the Life-boat, we may now turn to Sunder-
land's connection with the service.

In reply to a request for information as to
the establishment of the Life-boat service at
Sunderland, the secretary of the Royal National
Life-boat Institution says : — " A Life-boat was
first stationed at Sunderland in April, 1865, and
was named 'The Florence Nightingale."

But while that is true as far as the National

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 231

Institution is concerned, it does not by any
means represent the beginning of the Life-boat
service at this port.

Mr. W. J. Oliver, the local secretary of the
Royal National Life-boat Institution, and the
secretary of the Sunderland Volunteer Life
Brigade, has kindly lent me some old docu-
ments which came into his possession many
years ago, and from these it is possible to con-
struct a short history of the Life-boat service
at Sunderland. Among these old documents
are four balance sheets. No. 1 is headed, " A
brief statement of receipts and expenditure of
the Life-boat Fund, from its commencement up
to 181 1." It begins with 1800, and shows "Up
to May, 1800, Voluntary Contributions, £zil
14s. 4d."

Rewards to ' Ajax' -

Cost of boat and carriage

Incidentals

Balance -

;6I85 14

0

185 O

io±

3 3

8

0 15

9h

£377 H

4

In 1802 there was sufficient money in hand

232 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

to lend the Library ^200,* which brought in
^ioa year till 1.8 10, when the principal began to
be paid off. In 1808 an item is shown as "New
Boat, ,£106"; and the "rewards" gradually
rise from £1 7s. 6d. in 1803, when they are
first mentioned, to £4.3 15s. 2d. in 18 10,
the point of which observation will be seen
presently.

No. 2 balance sheet is for one year only, and
is not by any means so encouraging a statement
as the previous one. It is from May, 181 1, to
May, 1812. It begins with a balance in hand
of £92 6s. /d., shows £50 of the principal
money repaid by the Library Trustees, and
^150 borrowed on account of the balance, and
yet finishes with a balance due to the treasurer
of £27 12s. 3d. During this year ^150 had
been paid for alterations to the second boat
(they are called " the large boat " and u the
small boat "), but the biggest item in the year's
accounts is " rewards," which has jumped up
to ^218 lis. od. The first two items on the
credit side of this balance sheet are worth
mentioning : —

* This was, of course, the Subscription Library.

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 233

Oct. 19th. Thos. Oliver, who had

his leg broken - £9 o o
Mr. Gregson, surgeon,

attending Oliver -^11 6 6

The third balance sheet deals with six years,
18 1 2-1 8 ; and the fourth, which appears to be
the last issued, is from May, 18 18, to Jan. 9th,
1 8 1 9. Only two items from this account need be
mentioned ; the " rewards " have dropped to
£% 3s. 6d. ; and there is an item on Feb. 5th,
181 8, of "printing address, 18/-." Fortunately
a copy of this address has been preserved with
the balance sheets and some other old papers,
and it is of sufficient interest and importance to
be given in full. It was printed by G. Garbutt,
Sunderland, in Jan. 18 18, and explains the rise
and fall of the " rewards " : —

LIFE-BOATS.

An Appeal to the Sailors, Keelmen, Coblemen, &C,
of the Port of Sunderland.

The inhabitants of this town and neighbourhood
a few years ago, lamenting the frequent loss of so
many valuable lives by Shipwreck near this Port,
without having any means of attempting to save
them, humanely entered into a subscription to pro-

234 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

vide a Life-boat, under the management of a Com-
mittee, never doubting that numbers of brave water-
men, such as sailors, keelmen, coblemen, and
others, would be ready to volunteer their services
in manning it for the rescue of their fellow-creatures
from an awful and untimely death.

The shipowners have since that time provided a
small fund, at the discretion of the Committee to
keep the boat in repair, and to give a small recom-
pence to such brave men as might venture on those
praiseworthy occasions, and which they wish still
to do. From this fund, with the assistance of the
Commissioners of the Port, there have been two
boats added, at a very considerable expense, and
upon an improved plan, so as to afford the greatest
confidence in them. But the Committee and every
friend of humanity have now to regret, that all the
kindness and regard of the inhabitants and ship-
owners are likely to become ineffectual, from the
avarice of those men, to whom their suffering fel-
low-creatures look up, to put in practice the only
means of snatching them from impending death.

To gain money appears now to be the principal
object of those who offer themselves to save the
shipwrecked mariner, not only in going off in the
boats, but those who assist to launch them into the
sea. You mothers who might become widows —
you children who might become fatherless — you
fathers and mothers who might become childless —
and you who might lose your near and dear friends,

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 235

from the avarice or want of humanity in those men
— what would you say of them ? — You would no
doubt for ever reproach them for their want of fel-
low feeling.

Such individuals ought to consider, that by their
exertions on those occasions they are not serving
the committee, the shipowners, or the inhabitants,
except by raising in them feelings of gratitude at
their praise-worthy endeavours ; but that they are
then serving the sufferers, and their friends and re-
latives, together with the cause of humanity, for
which their own feelings must or ought to be a
reward.

The boats are provided, and every necessary con-
venience, the rest depends on the manly exertions
of those who are able and who are conversant in
their management. But it ought to be made known
generally, that there is no fund equal to the exor-
bitant demands which have been made, for it is now
nearly exhausted ; and that if such a practice be
continued the boats will become useless, and many
poor sufferers must perish.

By Order of the Committee.
Sunderland, January 17th, 1818.

On the face of it this extraordinary document
shows the sailors and fishermen of the port in
anything but a favourable light. But there is
another side to the question. Let the reader

236 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

turn once more to chapter two, and consider the
terrible struggle for existence which the poor
people of the town had to contend with at the
time this appeal was issued, and he will cease
to wonder that they asked to be paid for their
services. It was not that they were less willing
than those of their class, either before their
time or since, to risk their lives in the endea-
vour to save others, but, speaking generally,
they were in the grip of bitter poverty, and
were fain to earn an honest shilling whenever
opportunity offered. The "Appeal" is a pre-
judiced statement, and ignores the main factor
in the case — the wretched poverty of those it
denounces.

What has been said goes to prove conclusively
that the Life-boat was in use in Sunderland
from 1800, but even that date is not the earliest
at which an organisation existed for the saving
of life in the case of shipwreck. In Mr. Oliver's
possession is a well-made oaken box, 17 ins.
long, by nJ/£ ins. wide, by 8 ins. deep, with a
brass tablet let into the top of it inscribed,
"Sunderland Humane Society, 1791." The
inside of the box is marked off into small com-

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 237

partments, showing that it was used as a medi-
cine chest. It was taken over by Mr. Oliver
from the old Life Brigade house.

Among the old papers already mentioned is
a photograph of a boat, on the back of which is
written, "Sunderland's First Life-boat, 181 1."
The boat shown on the photograph is very
different from the modern Life-boat. It is more
like what is called, in the Royal Navy, a whale
boat as to size and general outline, though
different in construction. It is a ten-oared boat
(two men on a thwart), and is clinker built.
There is no rudder, but a thole pin is shown at
each end for steering with an oar. There are
thole pins for the oars, too, instead of rowlocks,
and bow and stern are shaped alike. The word
" Sunderland" appears on one end of the boat,
and near it a plate is affixed, on which, with the
aid of a magnifying glass, can be made out the
words " Life-boat Committee," and underneath
"Morgan Wake,"* but the rest of the inscription
is undecipherable. At the other end are the
words, "Life-boat No. 1," and this no doubt

* Mr. Morgan Wake was the builder of the boat, and on the
photograph he is shown sitting near to it.

238 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

led the original owner of the photograph to
consider it a picture of Sunderland's first Life-
boat. But the number, I believe, is intended
only to distinguish it from Life-boat No. 2, for
the old balance sheets show clearly enough that
there were two Life-boats here as early as 1808,
one being bought in 1800 at a cost of ^185, and
the other in 1808 at a cost of ^106. But the
photograph cannot be the picture of either of
these two boats, for the simple but sufficient
reason that photography was unknown at that
period, and did not become a commercial possi-
bility till about 1840. As a matter of historical
fact Daguerre only commenced his experiments
in 1824 ; and Fox published his invention of
the negative photographic process (which made
such a photograph as the one under consider-
ation possible) in 1839. And if the boat were
built in 181 1, she could not, thirty or thirty-five
years afterwards, have been in the excellent con-
dition the picture shows her to be. It is
obvious, therefore, that this is not a picture of
Sunderland's first Life-boat.

To return to our history. In spite of the
statements in the " Appeal," the records show

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 239

that there was no interruption of the Life-boat
service at this port.

In Mr. Oliver's possession is a cutting from
the Illustrated London News (1858), showing
the " Arrival of a new Life-boat at Sunderland."
The boat is on a carriage which is being drawn
by four horses, and a large concourse of people
is shown watching the proceedings. A great
banner is displayed on which are the words
"Presented by Miss Burdett Coutts," but I can
find no further record of this boat.

We come now to the history of the "Sunder-
land Branch of the Royal National Life-boat
Institution," which was instituted on April 27th,
1865. This Branch, though attached to the
National Institution, was worked quite inde-
pendently of it for some years, its funds being
provided by the local shipowners and by public
subscription. The first entry in the minute
book reads as follows : —

" April 27th, 1865.

11 Sunderland Life-boat, 'Florence Nightingale.'

u At a preliminary meeting held on Thursday,
April 27th, 1865, in Mr. Anderson's office, Villiers
Street, at which Captain Ward, the Inspector of

24o LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Life-boats, attended, Mr. Thomas Anderson, Mer-
chant, in the chair, the following gentlemen were
appointed as a local committee of management, to
be increased if required : — Thomas Anderson, Esq.,
Chairman, Messrs. George C. Pecket, Robert Ord,
Junr. , James Horan, John Firth, Edward Dawson,
Richard Oliver, and William Thompson, Junr.

" Resolved : It was proposed by Mr. Pecket and
seconded by Mr. Ord, that Mr. John Lambton be
appointed Hon. Treasurer.

" Proposed by the Chair and seconded by Mr.
Horan that Capt. Heard be appointed Hon. Secre-
tary. Also proposed by the Chair and seconded by
Mr. Ord that Mr. G. C. Pecket, Junr., be ap-
pointed Assistant Hon. Secretary.

"The thanks of the Committee are tendered to
the Royal National Life-boat Institution for the
handsome and valuable gift of the ' Florence Night-
ingale,' and also to Captain Ward, the Inspector,
for his kindness in exhibiting the boat's powers to
the public of Sunderland.

" Proposed by Mr. Horan and seconded by Mr.
Anderson that Captain Heard, Hon. Secretary, and
Messrs. Pecket and Ord be appointed to wait on
the Dock and River Commissioners to ask them to
erect a building for the Life-boat ' Florence Night-
ingale ' as soon as possible.

" Proposed generally that the Committee meet at
the end of each quarter to audit accounts and provide

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 241

for the good management of the boat ; and also
on any special occasions as required.

Signed,

Thomas Anderson, Chairman.

The next meeting was held on May 2nd,
1865, when William Boys, mariner and fisher-
man, was appointed coxswain of the boat, " at
the usual sum of £% per annum, to be paid
quarterly from April 1st; and that Joseph Clarke
be appointed second coxswain."

At the same meeting it was " Unanimously
agreed that the thanks of the meeting be given
to the Mayor and inhabitants of the town and
county of Derby for the handsome present of
the ■ Florence Nightingale' Life-boat, and begs
to assure them that the hardy seamen of this
Port will be ever ready to render a good account
of the valuable gift whenever their services may
be required in manning her."

A few extracts taken from the same Minute
Book will tell the subsequent history of the Life-
boat service in Sunderland.

April 18th, 1871, " At a meeting of the joint
Committees of the R.N. L.I. and the Sunderland
Life-boat Institution, held at the Commission

R

242 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Rooms, Exchange Buildings, George Hudson,
Esq., in the chair, it was moved by Aid. Reed,
seconded by Mr. Humble, that the Life-boats
and all other property belonging to the Sunder-
land Life-boat Institution be now handed over
to the Royal National Life-boat Institution.
Carried unanimously.

11 Moved by Mr. Pecket, seconded by Mr.
Porrett, that the boats and property be accepted
by the local Committee on behalf of the
R.N. L.I. Carried.

" Moved by Mr. Pecket, seconded by Mr.
Porrett, that the two Committees be amalga-
mated. Carried."

Feb. 5th, 1872. This was " the occasion of
the launching of the new Life-boat presented to
the parent society by Mrs. Eliza Foulston."

Jan. 1903. (No day given.) " The Com-
mittee report the receipt of a new boat from the
parent institution for Hendon beach."

Oct. 25th, 1905. The Committee was unani-
mously in favour of a motor boat being placed
at the North Dock, and instructed the honorary
secretary to ask the parent institution to place a
motor boat there instead of the row boat.

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 243

On April 26th, 19 10, the Committee having
considered a letter from the parent institution,
resolved to accept the offer of installing a motor
in the North Dock boat, but with regard to the
withdrawal of the South Outlet boat, they asked
that the station should be retained till experience
of the motor boat had been gained.

This minute finishes with the appointment of
a sub-committee to find a suitable mooring place
for the motor boat, and brings us up to date
with the Life-boat service.*

A few words are necessary with regard to the
Volunteer Life Brigade. It was owing to the
efforts of the late Capt. Coulson that the Brig-
ade was established at Sunderland in 1879. The
Board of Trade would not acknowledge two
Brigades in one Borough, that is, they would
not accept a Brigade for Roker and another for
the South Side of the river ; so the Sunderland
Brigade is divided into two sections, known as
the Roker and the South Pier Divisions. These
Brigades have been called into action over

* At the time of writing- Sunderland has three Life-boats, one
stationed at Hendon beach, one at the South Outlet, and the
third at Roker.

244 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

seventy times, and have landed, by means of
the Rocket apparatus, 292 persons."*

The Life-boat and the Rocket apparatus form
the principal means adopted for saving life on
the coasts of the United Kingdom. The
Rocket apparatus is the exclusive property of
the Board of Trade.

For the benefit of the reader who is not fa-
miliar with these two life-saving services, it may
be well to explain that the Life-boat service is
recruited from men accustomed to the sea, be-
cause they save the lives of the shipwrecked
mariners by going out to the wrecked ships ;
whereas the Volunteer Life Brigade may be,
and often is, composed entirely of civilians —
tradesmen and ordinary workmen, special know-
ledge of the sea not being so necessary to them,
as they work their apparatus entirely from the
shore and do not need to go on the sea.

Coming now to the services of Mr Watts in
connection with the Life-boat and Life Brigade,
no definite records are available giving all the
particular instances in which he was a willing

* From an unpublished paper by Mr. W. J. Oliver, the Hon.
Secretary of the Sunderland Brigade.

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 245

helper. But after a careful study of the local
returns of wrecks made to the Royal National
Life-boat Institution, and helped by various
other papers and sources of information, it is
possible to give a short general outline of his
services.

Many years before the Volunteer Life Brigade
was organised, and when the helpers were
sailors, coastguards, pilots, fishermen, and any
others who cared to volunteer, Mr. Watts was
a prominent helper, and seldom allowed other
duties to keep him from the scene of action.
His recollection of such work of rescue goes
back to the time when he was a young man of
twenty-two. The reader must remember that
most of these incidents have, by request, been
recalled by Mr. Watts, now in his 85th year,
and it is not to be expected that he can charge
his memory with the exact dates. But where it
has been possible to verify them this has been
done.

One memorable occasion which he recalls
with great interest was when one of the early
Life-boats was launched to go to the help of two
vessels behind the old North Pier. When

246 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

opposite the bar a heavy sea broke aboard the
boat and washed Coxswain Davidson overboard.
Henry, who was at the second oar, sprang aft,
caught him and held him till, with the assistance
of some of the crew, he was got on board again.
The oars were broken, and the boat thus help-
less, drifted on to the North Glacis. All those
in the boat were so exhausted and numbed by
the sleet and the dreadful cold, that they had to
be run along the beach to restore warmth and
animation. The crews of the vessels were
rescued by the North Side Life-boat.

As to this incident I find in the minute book
of the Sunderland Life-boat Society on Oct.
24th, 1882, a resolution appointing John David-
son Coxswain of No. 4 Life-boat.

Here is an extract from a report sent to the
Parent Society by the local secretary on Oct.
24th, 1894 : — " The ' Jernaes,' barque, of Nor-
way, from Falmouth to Shields, in ballast, wind
N.E., blinding showers, very heavy sea. At
twelve, midday, the ' Jernaes ' stranded on Hen-
don beach and became a total wreck. No lives
were lost, but one of the crew died after landing.
The Life-boat was manned and attempted to

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 247

go out between the piers, but was driven by the
force of the sea against the roundhead and six
oars were smashed. She returned to the boat-
house, got new oars and tried again, but failed,
and there was no steam tug to be got." Mr.
Watts was one of the crew on this occasion.

Once a ship, loaded with pit props, ran ashore
behind the South Pier in a gale of wind, the
crew being saved by the Life-boat. The agent
for the ship being anxious to save her boat,
which he said was very valuable, offered " a
good reward " to any one who would save it.
11 Times were very hard in Sunderland then,"
said Harry, " so three of us, Charley Chisholm,
Tom Hedley, and myself swam off to the ship
in the presence of hundreds of people. There
was no other way to get to her. We reached
her safely after a big struggle, brought the boat
ashore all right, and received seven-and-sixpence
each for our services, and were employed to dis-
charge the ship — a very difficult task."

On consideration, the boat does not appear
to have been of such great value after all, if one
is to judge from the " reward " paid for getting
her ashore.

248 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Among the letters preserved by Mr. Watts
is one from Ralph Thompson, the Coxswain of
the Life-boat " Florence Nightingale," refer-
ring to Henry's assistance in saving the crew
of 18 men from the barque "Julia Ravenna,"
which was wrecked on the South Pier end.
There is also a letter from the Board of Trade,
dated Jan. 28th, 1886, thanking him "for the
services rendered to the Chief Officer Coast-
guard at the wreck of the schooner ' Maggie.' '

With regard to the " Julia Ravenna," Henry
tells how when the men had been brought
ashore, some of them wanted to try and get
back to the ship again ; but as the Life Brigade
men saw that she would very soon break up,
they cut the connection between the shore and
the ship. This so exasperated one of the crew
that he rushed at Henry and kicked him in the
stomach, injuring him so seriously that he bled
from the nose and mouth, and was very ill for
some time. It is some satisfaction to know that
the brutal rascal who did this got a severe drub-
bing from the spectators.

On Sunday, Nov. 14th, 1875, the Italian
barque " Yole " with a crew of 14 and a North

HARRY WATTS SETTLED THE DIFFICULTY BY DASHING INTO
THE SKA.

LIFE-BOAT SERVICES 249

Sea pilot, came ashore on Hendon beach in a
heavy sea, a strong gale blowing from the
E.N.E. The Life-boat was launched and pro-
ceeded to the vessel, though, as the report
states, " With all the power of the crew's
brawny arms the advance was slow," and just
as she was nearing the ship, the barque's cable
parted and she drove ashore. The boat, unable
to reach her, let go her own anchor, but they
could not keep the boat's head to the sea, and
finally had to slip the cable and make for the
shore, the boat being damaged.

In the meantime the Life Brigade was at
work, and amongst those in the forefront was
Henry Watts. One by one, with the utmost
exertions, the crew were brought ashore, but
when about half of them had been landed the
life-line broke. Now the ship was being bat-
tered to pieces by the gale and the rocks, and
might part asunder at any moment. So what-
ever had to be done must be done without a
moment's loss of time. Then Harry Watts
settled the difficulty by dashing into the sea,
catching the end of the rope, bringing it ashore
and fastening it up with the shore end, and the

250 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

work of rescue was resumed. Only just in time,
too, for hardly had the last man been landed
when the ship went to pieces.

And so, with variations, the story might go
on and on, for there was seldom a storm on
this coast in those days without a wreck, and
seldom a wreck without Harry Watts being there
to help in rescuing the unfortunate seamen. The
brig "Tagus," of Aberdeen, in November, 1883;
the schooner " Mariner," of London, in Decem-
ber, 1878 ; the S.S. " Broomhill," of Dundee, in
February, 1881 ; the " Victoria," of Sunderland,
in April, 1877; the barque "Jernaes," in Octo-
ber, 1894; the S.S. "Stephenson," of London,
in December, 1881 ; the " Rienzi," " Gladys,"
" Ottercaps," "J. B. Eminson," two Italian
barques, a three - masted schooner, the brig
" Blucher ;" — these, and many other wrecks
Henry assisted at, the total number of lives he
helped to save by means of the Life-boats and
Rocket apparatus being over 120 — a worthy re-
cord surely.

CHAPTER XX

IN HARBOUR.

So He bringeth them unto their desired haven.

— Psalm cvii., verse 30.

\ I 7HEN he was in his seventieth year, and
V V had served the River Wear Commis-
sioners considerably over thirty years, Mr. Watts
retired. The constitution of the River Wear
Commissioners does not permit them to pen-
sion their servants, but they would have been
quite willing to pension him in effect by finding
him a nominal position had he so desired it.
But he had been a careful and good-living man,
and he expected that his savings would be suf-
ficient to keep him for the rest of his life. He
invested these savings in house property, but
the investment did not turn out so well as ex-
pected, and in the course of a few years he be-
gan to be in rather straitened circumstances.
The fact was not generally known ; had it been,
the town would not so far have forgotten his

252 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

services as to allow him to be in want during
his old age ; in fact it became known after Mr.
Carnegie had pensioned him that he had but
forestalled others in that kindly act.

However, whatever his circumstances, Henry
went about the town as cheerful and pleasant as
ever, and the writer who had many conversa-
tions with him during this time, never once
heard him complain.

On October 21st, 1909, Mr. Andrew Carnegie,
the donor of the three Branch Libraries which
Sunderland possesses, came by special invitation
to open the last of the three — the Monkwear-
mouth Branch Library.

Before he came to the town Mr. J. G. Addi-
son, who had given the site on which the Monk-
wearmouth Branch Library is built, and was
therefore to take part in the opening ceremony,
wrote to Mr. J. A. Charlton Deas, the Public
Librarian, asking for Mr. Watts's record, as it
had occurred to him (Mr. Addison), that when
Mr. Carnegie was in Sunderland something
might be done for Mr. Watts in connection
with the Hero Fund which Mr. Carnegie had
established.

IN HARBOUR 253

Then the matter was mentioned to the Mayor
(Coun. Arthur F. Young) by Mr. Addison and
Aid. J. G. Kirtley, who asked his Worship if he
would bring the matter before Mr. Carnegie.
This he readily promised to do, as he had
known Mr. Watts for many years and had a
very great respect for him.

Mr. Carnegie having arrived, the Mayor and
Mr. Deas conducted him over the Central
Library and Museum. Mr. Watts had pre-
sented his medals to the Museum a few months
previously, and when they came to the case in
which these are kept they were pointed out to
Mr. Carnegie, who asked " What did the man
do to get all these ? "

As he seemed to have an idea that the medals
were war trophies, a short outline of Henry's
work and character was given to him. Looking
at Henry's photograph he said, " A fine old
man. I'd like to have met that man and shaken
him by the hand. How old was he ? "

" He is about 84," was the reply, " and it is
possible to shake hands with him yet."

" Oh ! " said he, " I'd give something to have
that pleasure."

254 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

"You shall have that pleasure this evening,
then," and arrangements were at once made to
bring Mr. Carnegie and Mr. Watts together.

As they turned from the case containing the
medals Mr. Carnegie asked, " What are the old
man's circumstances ? " and on being told that
he was not very well off he at once said, " He
shall never want again in this world ! Ah," he
continued, "he has evidently been a brave man.
It is fine to come across a man who is not only
a physical but a moral hero. If ever you come
across any of these heroes of the Fund who
have children with ability which requires bring-
ing out by higher education, I wish you would
report it to the officials of the Hero Fund Trust.
By getting hold of these children we might be
raising a grand crop of people of the right kind."

After the ceremony at Monkwearmouth in the
evening, Mr. Carnegie was presented with the
Freedom of the Borough, in the Reception
Room at the Town Hall, and it was while wait-
ing for this meeting to begin that Henry Watts
was introduced to him. They talked together
for a long time, so long indeed that the meeting
was kept waiting for a while.

IN HARBOUR 255

During his speech, which followed the pre-
sentation of the Freedom of the Borough, Mr.
Carnegie, referring to Henry Watts, said that
he had been introduced that day to a man
who, he thought, had the most ideal character
of any man living on the face of the earth.
He had shaken hands with a man who had saved
thirty-six lives. " Among the distinguished
men whose names the Mayor had recited they
should never let the memory of that Sunderland
man die. Compared with his acts military glory
sank into nothing. The hero who killed men
was the hero of barbarism ; the hero of civilisa-
tion saved the lives of his fellows."

During his stay in Sunderland Mr. Carnegie
was the guest of the Mayor (Mr. Young), and
that evening after dinner Mr. Carnegie said to
the Mayor, " Well, now, what about Mr. Watts?
What do you think about £4. per month ? "

The Mayor remarked that Mr. Watts would
be delighted.

''Well," said Mr. Carnegie, "We'll make it
£5 a month. Bertram," he said, turning to his
secretary, "see that the necessary particulars
are sent on to the officers of the Hero Fund."

256 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

The following day Mr. Carnegie, his secre-
tary, the Mayor and Mr. Deas motored over to
Newcastle, and while going round that city the
war monument in the Haymarket, designed by
Mr. T. Eyre Macklin, the sculptor, was pointed
out to him.

11 Yes," he said, " it is a fine monument, raised
to the memory of a lot of brave fellows who lost
their lives in taking life ; but he is a nobler man
who risks his life to save another's. It gave me
greater pleasure to shake hands with Harry
Watts than it would do to shake hands with a
great soldier. One of the things which will live
in my memory in connection with this very
pleasant visit to Sunderland, is my meeting with
that fine old man."

A little later he remarked, "Well, I have fixed
Harry up all right, and arranged with Bertram
that he is to have 25/- a week for life, and if his
wife survives him she is to have it after him.
A fine old man : the bravest man I have ever
met !"

And thus was Henry Watts freed from all
financial cares and enabled to enjoy the evening
of life quietly.

IN HARBOUR 257

One of the most lasting impressions made
upon the mind of the writer when, as a boy, he
entered the Royal Navy in 1865, was a double
line of old battleships moored in the river Med-
way. A naval pensioner or two on each vessel
served to keep them clean and in order, but
otherwise they were rarely visited, being on the
" Past Active Service " list. But to him it was
a great delight to board one of them when op-
portunity offered. How stately they looked ;
how gracefully they sat upon the water ; and
what memories of the past they evoked — glori-
ous memories of a time when England stood
alone against the world, and these old battle-
ships upheld her honour and glory ! And how
roomy and comfortable they were compared
with the modern iron man-traps which Science
evolved to take their places !

I pity the man who, walking the decks of one
of these " Wooden walls of old England," could
not conjure up from the past the cocked-hatted
Admirals and Captains fearlessly walking the
decks 'mid smoke of powder and the scream of
shot and shell ; the jagged shot-torn sails ; the
smoking guns and the half-naked, pig-tailed

258 LIFE OF HARRY WATTS

Jacks, with deep, hairy breasts and tattooed
arms, hurrying to and fro serving the guns.

Some of these ships were with Jervis (after-
wards Lord St. Vincent), that grim old Admiral
who, in February, 1797, engaged and defeated
the great Spanish Fleet off Cape St. Vincent ;
some were companions of the " Formidable " in
her long list of victories under Lord Rodney ;
Duncan knew some of them and Lord Cochrane
knew others ; while a few could boast of the
proud distinction of having helped Nelson at
Trafalgar ; oh ! but they were mighty warriors
all of them, and each had a brave record.

And there they lie, worn-out leviathans of
the past, put out of service by the Law of
Progress, which is eternal and respects nothing.
But though Science may despise them, and
Youth hurry by with scarcely a passing glance,
yet shall they live in the memory of all who
love their country, of all who respect honour-
able service and duty faithfully done.

In writing the final words of this imperfect
story of the life and labours of Harry Watts, I
feel that I cannot do better than liken him to
one of those fine old ships. Like them he bears

IN HARBOUR

259

the scars of a long and honourable service ; and
though now, in his 85th year, he is, like them,
laid by in harbour as " Past Active Service,"
there is still that about him which commands
our respect, still that dignity of bearing which
only such service can bring ; and a history which
may well inspire the younger generation to em-
ulate his heroic deeds.

Old Age is my Guest — but my duty I've done,

With God's help, to the last!
A?id the Future? — I've lived it, and face it again

Colours nailed to the mast !
And the present? — Ah me, but the I?igle-nook's warm,

Let me dream of the Past !

26o

LIST OF PERSONS SAVED BY HENRY WATTS.

i. — While at Quebec, in 1839, a fellow apprentice,
named Richard Nicholson, fell overboard, and Watts,
though then a mere boy, jumped in and rescued him.

2. — At Miramichi, on board the "Cowen," the Cap-
tain (J. Luckley), capsized a canoe he was bringing to
the ship and was thrown into the water. Watts, who
was waiting for him at the gangway of the ship, immed-
iately plunged into the water, taking a rope with him,
and so saved the Captain.

3. — While coming through the Pentland Firth on
board the brig "United Kingdom," a lad named Watson
was washed overboard in a heavy sea. Watts sprang
over after him and with difficulty managed to regain the
ship with him.

4 & 5. — While in the " Protector," in 1845, and lying
at Woolwich, a barge foundered with two men on board,
and both of them were rescued by Watts.

6 to 11. — In 1847, while lying at Rotterdam in a ves-
sel called the " Express," the boat of a foreign ship was
smashed by an anchor dropping into it, throwing the
six men who were in her into the water. Watts jumped
into the boat belonging to his own ship and reached
them in time to save them all.

12. — In 1852 a boy named Paul was drowning outside
the South Pier when Henry jumped in and rescued him,
after great exertions.

26l

13. — The same year he plunged into the river and
saved a boy named Maughan, who had fallen from
Smurthwaite's Wharf.

14. — A young woman, while a strong sea was run-
ning, attempted to commit suicide from the shore below
the pier. Watts, after an exhausting struggle, brought
her to land.

15. — Rescued a girl who had fallen into the canal at
Cardiff.

16. — Rescued William Smith, a trimmer, who fell into
the dock while going on board a vessel.

17. — In 1854 he saved a boy at Wapping Dock, and
as a result had a serious illness lasting three months,
due to swallowing some of the poisonous water.

18 & 19. — In very severe weather he jumped over-
board to save two boys at the South Outlet, and not-
withstanding that he took the cramp, he brought them
to shore.

20 & 21. — In 1863 a girl and a boy fell from the quay
near Panns Ferry into the river. Watts, who was near
at the time, jumped overboard, swam to them and saved
them.

22. — In 1866 a boy named Smith fell from a dredger
at No. 2 Graving Dock, and was rescued by Watts.

23. — Sept., 1866. A boy named Hall fell overboard
near the River Wear Commissioners' Quay. Watts
jumped from the breakwater and saved him.

24. — A boy fell from the Custom House Quay and
was brought ashore by Watts.

25. — In 1868 a boy named John Fox, living in Mill

262

Street, fell from a boat at the Mark Quay. Watts
swam to him and, with great difficulty, rescued him.

26. — July, 1869. James Watt, a shipwright, fell into
the South Dock basin. Watts swam to the man and
landed him in safety.

27. — June, 1870. A boat containing a pleasure party
of eight children and three adults capsized in the river.
Watts saved one of the party, and was in fact instru-
mental in saving them all.

28. — Same day he jumped into the river and rescued
a man named Robert Wilson.

29. — The same year he rescued a boy who had fallen
into the river near the Tide Gauge Jetty.

30. — August, 1875. Jumped into the River Wear to
the rescue of a boy named Edward Bolton, being him-
self nearly drowned, owing to the boy clutching him
round the legs.

31. — September, 1876. Rescued a boy named James
Taylor, who had fallen into the river near Mark Quay.

32. — November, 1876. Saved another boy named
Henry Dobson, who had fallen into the river, swimming
with him until a boat came to the rescue.

33. — May, 1877. A man named John Lonsdale was
dragged overboard from a keel, where he and Watts
were working, by a heavy chain with which he had be-
come entangled. Watts dived over after him, released
him from the chain, and brought him aboard the keel.

34. — May, 1881. Jumped into the Graving Dock,
though encumbered with his diving dress, and rescued
a lad named Jones, who had fallen in and was drowning.

263

35. — August, 1884. A boy named James Riseborough
had fallen into the outer basin, and a big dog had been
sent in to the lad's help, but instead of helping he was
actually drowning the boy. Watts came up, saw what
was happening, and jumped in and brought the lad to
shore.

36. — May, 1892. A boy named Fatherley fell into the
South Dock. Henry and his wife were, at the time,
walking along to their home, then on the South Dock.
Hearing the cries Henry at once turned back, his wife
begging him not to go. (He was then 66 years old.)
However, she reached the dock side first, and when she
saw the lad struggling in the water she cried out, " Be
quick, Harry ! Be quick !" Henry jumped in, swam to
the boy, brought him to the dock side and held him
there till a rope was lowered. This he fastened round
the boy's waist and he was hauled up, the same process
being repeated with Henry.

A SAD LIST.

The following is a list of Mr. Watts's relatives who
were drowned, and it may in some measure explain his
constant desire to save others : —

When Henry was a boy his brother was drowned in
the Bristol Channel.

Next, two of his nephews, William and Henry Sloan,
were drowned from a steam-boat in the North Sea.

264

A cousin, Captain Crozier, took his daughter away
for the good of her health, and both were drowned
while away.

The mother of his second wife, while at the Fish
Market with her husband, was suddenly missed and was
never seen again ; but her market basket was picked up
in the river by the ferryboat-man.

Apart from the above it may also be mentioned that
a niece of his had two children killed in the Victoria
Hall Disaster.

MR. HENRY WATTS S MEDALS.

Mr. Watts some time ago presented his medals and
certificates, which have been awarded him for life-
saving, to the Sunderland Corporation. The medals
are to be seen in the Sunderland Museum, in the room
adjoining the Art Gallery, and the certificates are ex-
hibited in the Reading Room of the Hendon Branch
Library, Villette Road, in the district in which Mr.
Watts resides. The following are the medals : —

(1). — Bronze Medal and Honorary Clasp of the Royal
Humane Society. Inscription : " Henry Watts, 21st
August, 1868. (Duplicate). Clasp : " 8th May, 1892."

(2). — Gold and Bronze Medal. Inscription : "Pre-
sented to Mr. Henry Watts for his courage and humanity

265

in saving the lives of 25 persons from drowning. 1868."
On the other side : " Diamond Swimming Club and
Humane Society."

(3). — Gold Medal. Inscription : " Presented to Mr.
Henry Watts by Mr. Richardson for searching the
River Wear and recovering the body of his grandson.
1875." On the other side : " Mr. Henry Watts, diver
at the recent Tay Bridge Disaster, has saved the lives
of 35 persons from drowning, besides rendering valuable
Life-boat and Rocket-line services. 4th August, 1884."

(4). — Silver Medal. Inscription : "Presented to Mr.
Henry Watts by the Sailors of the East End of Sunder-
land in appreciation of his many kind services to them.
April, 1877." On the other side : " One of the original
medals taken from the Bazaar, James Williams Street,
and found in the ashpit at Southwick. 5th August,
1878."

(5). — Silver Medal. Duplicate of No. 4.

(6).— Gold Medal. " Presented to Mr. Harry Watts
by the United Temperance Crusaders for his ready
courage in saving 33 persons from drowning. Septem-
ber 4th, 1878." (The original medal was given in 1875.)

(7). — Silver Star Medal. Inscription : " Presented to
Mr. Henry Watts as a mark of approbation for saving
many lives from drowning. 1878. G.H.R."

(8). — Bronze Medal. Inscription on rim : u Henry
Watts for saving life from drowning on various occa-
sions." Also inscribed : " Awarded by the Board of
Trade for gallantry in saving life. V.R."

266

LIST OF CERTIFICATES, ETC.

(i). — Parchment Certificate from the Royal Humane
Society, dated 17th October, 1866. . . Awarded for
saving the life of William Hall.

(2). — Certificate from the Diamond Swimming Club
and Humane Society, dated September 22nd, 1868.
Awarded "for saving the life of a boy in the River
Wear, he having previously saved 24 lives."

(3). — Honorary Testimonial of the Royal Humane
Society, dated the 17th August, 1869. Awarded for
saving the life of James Watt, July 21st, 1869.

(4). —Vellum Certificate of the Royal Humane Society,
dated 21st September, 1875. Awarded for saving the
life of Edward Bolton on the 18th August, 1875.

(5). — Illuminated Address, presented with the dupli-
cate medals on December 3rd, 1878.

(6). — Certificate presented with the Bronze Clasp of
the Royal Humane Society on June 15th, 1892, "for
having saved life from drowning."

IN DEX.

A Daring feat
Addison, Mr. J. G. ...
Admiral Jervis
" Adolphus," wreck of
A False Admirer
After Thirty Years ...
Albert Medal Proposed

A Plucky Act

Apprenticed to the Sea
Apprentices boarded out
A Strange Scene
Atkinson's, Mr., Diary

Back to the Sea
Bailey, Jim, episode
Baling- out the room
Ballast Hills ...
Ballast, disposal of
Do. Town built on

PAGE

249
252

258

108

4,7
92

156
212

33

100

22

18

55
89
29

13
96

96> 97

"Balmoral Castle" wrecked 62
Batavian ship " Blucher " ... 89
Bible presented
Binks, Mrs. ..

Birth, date of

Blown up when diving

"Blaymonge"

Blood poisoning

Board of Trade medal

Bolton, Ed. rescued.. 107, 129

Boy saved, Commissioners

...128
... 31

*3> 35
...110
... 87
...118
...141

Quay

Boy and girl saved ...
Boys, two rescued ...
Boys, Wm., Coxswain
Booth, Captain
Branfoot, Mr. W. J.
Branch Libraries
Bullick, Mr. George...

.104
.103
.103
241

• 55
.124
.252
.205

Casters and Keelmen

" Castlereagh," The

Certificate, R.H.S.

Do. of discharge

Cholera in London ...

Cochrane, Lord

Commissioners, Town

Condition of Streets

Conversion

Do. facts of his

Do. A test of

Do. A, in the park..

Cook, Captain Thos.

Coutts, Miss Burdett

" Cowen," The

Crab, attacked by

Crass, Mr., draper ..

Crawford, Jack ... 14,

17
28

127

62

2

258
15
15
66
70

■ 72
78

, 62

239
48

hi
25

'34

Dalton Waterworks... ...189

Do. Shaft ... .. 192

Davidson, Coxswain ...246

Deas, Mr. Charlton 252, 253
Death of Henry's father ... 48
Devil fish, fight with ...102

Diamond Swimming Club 122,
123, 126
Diving, facts about .. -177

Do. dangers of ... ...182

Diver, begins as ... ... 62

Diving Bell Incident ... 81

Divers, rate of pay ot ...187

Diving Bell first used .. ior

Dodds, Mr. C. H., 95, 163, 170
Dog, saving his . •••59

Donaldson, Jimmy, story of.. .24
Dunning Street ... ... 25

Campbell, Mr. J. G. 123, 128, 156
Carnegie, Mr. Andrew, 252, 253

Early days
Early marriage
Education, lack of

27
52
86

268

Entangled when diving 108, 109
" Elizabeth Jane " ashore
Epoch-making- Event, An
" Erato," of Hamburg
Ettrick, Squire
" Express," The

61
. 66

•*73
.216

• 55

. 81
.119

• 46
•258
.121

• 48
> 54
203

75
100

241
242
,213

33
107

25

32

14

Glenny, Mr. Henry ... ...206

Gold medal presented 128, 129
Gold watch presented . . . 131

Greathead, Mr. Henry

227, 229, 230
Grey, Mattie and Jeanie 57

Hamburg, A passage to ... 86
Hanson, Mr. Thomas ... 72

Harry is pensioned ... .-256

Harry's most dangerous task 208
Havelock-Allan, Sir Henry... 157
Heard, Captain, R.N., 126, 240
Henry's optimism ... . .. 75

Henry's humour ... ... 88

Herrington Street Chapel ... 75
Hero Fund ... ... 252,254

Hetton Drops, escape at ...no
Hodgson, Mr. Joseph ... 88

Home of the Watts ... 29

Horse, valuable, rescued ...216

Facing death ...

Faith, cured by

Father, last good-bye to

Final words ...

First acknowledgment

First life saved

First wife ... ... 52

Finney, Mr. Joseph ... 202,
Flag Lane P.M. Chapel ...
Food, price of, 1850-60
"Florence Nightingale"

230, 239,
Foulston, Mrs. Eliza
French, Mr. Hartley

Gage, Captain
Gallant rescue, A

Galley's Gill

Garrison Pottery, The
Gasworks, beginning of

Improvement Act, 1826
Indentures

36-45

indentures ... ... 30-45

Incidents in religious life ... 78

Interlude, An ... ... ... 83

" In Harbour "

83
251

Jammed under a ship ...116

James Williams St. C.L.C....143

"James," The ... ... 49

" Jernaes " wrecked ...246

"John Murray" wrecked 53, 61
"John Muller," The... ... 57

Journal, beginning of ■••8,9

" Julia Ravenna " wrecked, 248

Kayll, Aid

Keelmen and Casters
Keelmen in arms
Kelloe Winning Pit ...
King's Entry ...
Kindly teachers
Kirtley, Aid. J. G. ...

.130

• 17

• 25
.207

• 52

• 3i
•253

Laing Warehouse opened ... 87
Lamb, Mr. George ... ... 61

Lamb, Mr. Friend ... .213

" Lena," The brig ... 33, 46
Letters of appreciation 202-206
Life-boat services ... 224-250

Life-boats, " An Appeal
Littleboy, Mr., diver
Lonsdale, Mr. J., rescued
Luckley, Captain, rescued
Lukin, Mr. Lionel

" Maggie," Wreck of
Mainsforth Ter. Chapel
Marriage Customs ...

Do. Henry's second
Maryport, an escape at
Mather, Capt. Alex...
11 Martha," The brig
Mathew, Father

233
190

115

48

226

248

75

53

93

114

211

62, 92

47

Maughan, boy named, saved 58

Meat money
Medals stolen...

Do. duplicates given
Millfield, incident at...
Miramichi

36> 4'
'43
152
"5
48

269

Money recovered ... 112, 113
Do. for services, refused 170

Monkey's Yard 93

Do. property deeds 93
Motor boat, North Dock ...242

Narrow Escapes ... 117-218

Nelson, Lord 258

Newspaper reference, First 103
Newbottle Pit ...207

Nicholson saved ... 47

Do. Coun. J 130

North Dock opened 17

Novel use for a diver, A ...172

Old Market, The 14

Oliver, Mr. W. J. 231

Open-air Festivities ... ... 21

" Past Active Service " 257

Paupers in Sunderland ... 19
Paul, boy named, rescued ... 57
Payment of crews ... •••99

Pentland Firth 49

Pleasure party rescued 213

Poisoned by Thames water 4
Poisoned air, Working in .175
Poor cess ... ... ... 19

Poor, condition of ... ... 18

Population of Sunderland in

1821 13

Port Seaham ... ... ... 14

Potts, Mr. W. 204

Poverty of the workers ... 21
" Princess Alice" sunk ...147
Prehistoric Canoe ... .222

Presentation Bronze medal... 124
Do. Gold medal ...124

"Protector," The 50

Provisions, Price of, in 1820 24
Public indifference 63

131
128
I, 2

33 » 46, 49
... 25

Quebec
Queen Street ...

Recognition ... ... ...120

Rennison, Mr. G. H. .. 149

Retirement ... ... ...251

"Rewards" 233

R.H.S. Certificate

Richardson, Mr.
River Thames

Do. Wear Commissioners

61, 62, 92, 251

Do. Wear Improvements... 98
Robe, Mr. John ... ..123

Robinson, Mr. W. ... ...123

Robson, Mr. S. R. ... 152, 157

Rodney, Lord ... ...258

Rotterdam ... 55, 56
Royal N.L.I, established ...230
Ruddick, Mr. J. R 200

Sanderson, Mr. Thomas
Sailors' Tribute, A ...
Scoffer answered, A
Schooner "Susan"...
Seaham Harbour
Seamen and drink ...

Do., six, saved ...
Second wife, Death of
Shipwrights' Wages, 1820
Ships, Long detention of
Shipwrecked three times
Shore life ended
Singing ninnies
Silver Street ... ...21,52

Sierra Leone ..
Silver medal presented
Smurthwaite's Wharf
Snowball, Mr., solicitor
South Pier, Old
South Dock ...
Straitened Circumstances
Streets, Condition of... 15,
Struggle for existence, 21,
Stocks used ...

Stafford, Mr

Starts housekeeping ..
Sunderland when Watts was

born ..
Sunderland in 1819

22
135

78
"3

47
56
94
25
99
61

33
24

79

58
136

57
94
16

17
6

25
27
24
31
52

Do. Parish Paupers, 20
Do. V. Life Brigade

23i» 243
Do. Life-boat fund ...231
Do. First Life-boat... 237
Do. Branch R.N.L.I.

239, 242

270

Sunderland River & Port ... 95
Sunderland Daily Echo Lead-
ing- articles... ... 132, 145

Sunday School incident ... 30
Suicide, would-be, rescued... 59
"Susannah," The brig- 59

Storey, Mr. Samuel ... 135, 136
Sutherland, Mr. J. W. ...206

Stafford Street Mission ... 72
"Stormy Petrel," The ... 88
Swimming to a Ship •••247

Tay Bridge Disaster •••lS9

Temperance cause ... ... 76

Test of religion ... 80

Teetotal helmet, A 87

Terrible possibility, A ...196

Theft of medals, thief caught

Three months' illness ... 4

Thompson, Mr., draper ... 61
Do. Sarah Ann ... 93
Do. Mr. W., Mayor 127
Thompson, Ralph, Coxswain 248
" Tommy the Bellman " ... 23

11 United Kingdom," The ... 49
United Temperance Crus-
aders ... ... 129, 148

Victoria Hall Disaster ...221

Wake, Mr. Morgan 237

War Monument, Newcastle, 256
Wapping Dock, Rescue at 2, 61
Waterworks, Beginning ot .. 14
Wading across the river ... 17

Watts family, The 27

Watts as a diver ... .106

Watts, Mr. Tom ... ...219

Watt, James, rescued ..126

Watson, Mr. R. H 148

Watson, George, saved ... 49
Wardle, Captain George ... 62
Wallace, Captain, murdered 50
Wages of seamen, 1826 ... 47
Do. as apprentice, 36, 41
Ward, Captain •••59

Wilson, Mr. D. ... ...171

William Watts drowned ... 27
Wilson, Robert, rescued ...214
" Wooden Walls," England's

257
Woolwich, men rescued at... 50
Work at a weaving factory 33
Wouldhave, Mr. W., 226, 228, 229
Wreck of the "Richard"... 28
Wright, Mr. D 104

" Yole," barque, wrecked ...248
Young, Mr. James ... .. 204

Young, Mr. A. F. (Mayor)... 253